The Way It's Supposed to Be
by mysskryssy
Summary: Kayla Danforth is back in Albuquerque and attending East High, after spending 3 years at a NY boarding school. She's been able to put her broken family back together, but will she be able to get what she's always wanted?
1. Introducing Kayla Danforth

**Disclaimer: I don't own HSM or the characters, except Kayla, and HSM 2 never happened.**

Chapter One: Introducing Kayla Danforth

"Ahh" I sigh walking into East High, taking a moment to take it all in. It's so big, and decorated in lots of red and white. Everywhere I turn, someone has on those colors. Can you say school spirit?

"Amazing huh," my older brother Chad said putting an arm around me, snapping me out of my trance.

"Yeah, I didn't think it would be this big. What if I get lost or something" was my reply. It's not like I'm really afraid of getting lost, I am a 16 year-old senior after all, I just needed reassurance from my brother.

"You'll be fine, you have a school map, and you're one of the smartest girls I know. I'm sure you can find your way around East High" was his response, just the one I needed.

"Thanks Chad, sometimes you know exactly what to say to make me feel better" I told him giving him a hug.

" Sure thing" he said, "what are big brothers for? Anyway, I have to go meet up with the guys before homeroom. You'll be ok, right?"

"Yeah, you already showed me where Ms. Darbus' class and my locker where, I'll be fine" I replied.

"Ok, see you in homeroom then" he said.

"Oh, and Chad…" I started, only to be cut off by him.

"I know, I know. Whatever I do don't tell Taylor" he responded heading to the gym.

"Thanks" I yelled after him, getting a wave in response.

I headed to the office to check in, and get my books. I had been able to get my schedule and locker assignment yesterday when my mom dropped off my information, so I had already familiarized myself with the school, but first day jitters still got the best of me. Thankfully, I had Chad with me. He told me that he or one of our other brothers would be in most of my classes, so I wouldn't be alone. He also told me that Taylor would be in my classes as well, but he failed to mention my other siblings, which I just brushed off as him being forgetful.

Before I go any further, I should probably introduce myself. My name is Kayla Danforth, and I'm a 16 year-old senior at East High. I have an older brother, Chad, who is also a senior at East High, only he's 17, almost 18. How can we both be seniors? Simple, I skipped a grade.

In elementary school, I was allowed to skip a grade and go right to fourth from second, so I ended up in the same grade as my big brother. I was already close to his friends Zeke, Troy, and Jason, and when I joined them in fourth grade, we became closer, and they pretty much became my big brothers. Taylor was assigned to be my partner because our teacher thought I would adjust better if I had someone to show me the ropes. She was cool, and a lot like me, so we instantly clicked. Two other people I met and clicked with were Ryan and Sharpay Evans, who thought it was their responsibility to introduce me to the world of fashion and theater.

From then on, the eight of us hung together and were nearly inseparable. That is until I got a scholarship in eighth grade to attend George Lincoln Academy, a prestigious boarding school in New York. I always thought the name was weird, I mean come on "George Lincoln"? Apparently the school's founders couldn't decide between naming the school after George Washington or Abraham Lincoln, so they chose both.

Anyway, that's where I've been for the past three years, while my "siblings" have been living it up here at East High. It really wasn't that bad though, I just missed my family like crazy, and am glad to be back. I can already tell that this year will definitely be the best.

**A/N: Please review, feedback (positive or negative) is really appreciated. Thank you.**


	2. Welcome Back

**Disclaimer: I don't own HSM or the characters, except Kayla, and HSM 2 never happened.**

Chapter 2: Welcome Back

After checking in and getting my books, I headed for my locker. So far I haven't seen any of my "siblings". Chad, Troy, Zeke, and Jason were all in the gym, working on basketball, so I knew I wouldn't see them before class. Not that I was actively looking for them since I had already seen them Sunday when they came over to play basketball.

I was searching for my siblings who didn't know I was back in town, Taylor, Ryan, and Sharpay. I was so excited to see them, and wanted to tell them as soon as I got back, but my mom kept saying "you'll see them at school," and here it is Friday and I'm just now going to school. Sharpay is so gonna kill me when she finds out I've been here for almost an entire week and haven't called. Taylor on the other hand will probably be totally understanding, that's just the way she is. Speaking of Taylor, here she comes. Putting my last book in my locker and closing the door, I turn around.

"Hi Taylor" I said as if I had just seen her yesterday, as opposed the three years it's really been.

"Kayla" she exclaimed. "Is that really you?"

"Hey Tay, yes it's really me" I said reaching for a hug.

"Look at you, all grown up and everything. What are you doing here, and how long have you been back" she asked looking me over.

" I transferred here from GLA, and I've been here almost a week" I said, almost whispering the last part, but she still heard me.

"A week" she yelled. "You've been here a week, and you haven't called me? Why didn't Chad tell me? He is so dead.

"Tay wait" I said grabbing her before she followed through on her threat. "It's not his fault. My mom didn't want him to tell anyone. She said it would be best if you guys saw me instead"

"So nobody knows you're back," she asked, calming down from being left in the dark.

"Well, Troy, Ze, and Jay know because Chad forgot to cancel their basketball game, but other than them, no" I replied.

"So Ryan and Sharpay don't know," she asked me.

"No, do you think you could come with me to tell them" I asked her. "You know how Pay is, and she'll most likely overreact."

"Umm, Sharpay and I aren't exactly on speaking terms" Tay responded.

"So you guys really did "break up,"" I asked her.

"Yeah, when we got here, we went our separate ways, and just don't talk anymore" she told me.

"Well, do you think you guys could get along tonight so we can have an official TayPayKay sleepover" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I'm sure we can get along for one night" she said.

"And maybe more" I mumbled, determined to get them back together.

"What was that" she asked me.

"Oh, I just said ok" I said trying to cover up. "I need to find Ry and Pay, and speak to Ms.Darbus before homeroom, so I'll see you there?"

"Yeah, I'll see ya in homeroom" she replied. "Oh, and welcome back lil' sis."

"Thanks big sis" I replied, heading off to homeroom where I figured I'd find Sharpay and Ryan, and if not, at least I'd be able to speak to Ms. Darbus before homeroom.

I made it to Ms. Darbus' classroom, but she wasn't there yet, so I decided to explore the interesting room. I noticed posters of previous shows on the walls, most featured Ryan and Sharpay, but there was one that had Troy and a girl I have never met, which I assumed had to be Gabriella.

Chad told me a little about her, and Troy told me more on Sunday, so I wanted to meet her. Hopefully she came to school today so I can meet her and get to know her. From what the guys have told me, she is pretty nice, and Chad told me she's Tay's best friend, so she can't be too bad, and it would be nice to have a new sister, two actually since I've been told that Jay has a serious girlfriend named Kelsi. Her name sounds familiar, but I don't remember her. Chad said she kept to herself in elementary school, which is probably why I don't remember her.

I was so focused on the posters that I didn't notice two people walk up behind me until one of them spoke.

"If you think for one second that you are just gonna waltz in here and steal my show, you had better think again" one of the people said. It sounded a lot like Sharpay, but Pay would never say something like that.

"Sharpay, she was just looking at the posters, you don't know if she's even interested in drama," replied the other voice. That was definitely Ryan, and since he said Sharpay, the first voice must be hers, so I decided to get under her skin.

"Actually," I said without turning around, "I've been informed that my sister is drama club president, and that she and my brother practically run this place, so I think I can do whatever I want."

"Look missy," Sharpay began, "I don't know who you think you are, or what lies you've been told, but I'm drama club president."

"I know that Pay" I said turning around smiling. "Hi guys."

"KAYLA" they both screamed enveloping me into a hug so tight it was hard to breathe.

"Guys, can't breathe" I said struggling to take a breath.

"Sorry" they said together.

"I've missed that" I said to them.

"Missed what" they asked still speaking simultaneously.

"That twin thing, you guys saying the same thing at the same time" I replied.

"We don't do that" they immediately responded together.

They looked at each other, then at me, then the three of us burst into laughter. We were interrupted by my brothers loudly coming into the room.

"Aww look, the Ice Queen laughs" Chad said, earning laughs from the guys and a glare from Sharpay.

"Ice Queen" I mouthed to Ryan.

"He means Sharpay" he mouthed back.

"Oh" I mouthed simply, wondering why Chad would refer to Pay like that. I didn't have much time to think about it because Ms. Darbus entered and I had to excuse myself so I could talk to her. I made my way up to the front of the class thinking about how much more interesting this day could get.

**A/N: Please review, feedback (positive or negative) is really appreciated. Thank you.**

**  
**


	3. Lunchtime Confrontation

**Disclaimer: I don't own HSM or the characters, except Kayla, and HSM 2 never happened.**

Chapter 3: Lunchtime Confrontation

After homeroom, class was uneventful. I spent most of the morning with Ryan and Sharpay. After calming Sharpay down over being left in the dark, I was able to convince her to come to the TayPayKay sleepover, with Ryan's help of course. Once Ryan pointed out that Taylor had also been left in the dark, and I wasn't picking one over the other, she finally agreed to come.

Classes may have been uneventful, but walking the halls with Ryan and Sharpay was anything but. Everywhere we went, we were getting stares and comments like "oh look, the Ice Queen has a new servant" or "there's the new Ice Queen in training, we should call her the Ice Princess." At first, I didn't know what or whom they were talking about, but after the first couple times, I figured out they meant me. It didn't seem to bother Ry or Pay, so I tried not to let it bother me. I just decided to file it away as a discussion topic for later.

Anyway, now it's lunchtime, so I grabbed my lunch and followed Ryan and Sharpay to the "drama" table where I was introduced to the "important" members of the drama club. I sat next to Kelsi, who hadn't been in our morning classes due to a doctor's appointment. Kelsi and I were making small talk, and she remembered that I had been in a few plays in elementary and middle school and asked if I was still interested in drama.

"Yeah" I responded, "at GLA, I was actually drama club president, but I don't want to step on anyone's toes." I said this last part for Sharpay's benefit.

"Kay, you wouldn't be stepping on anyone's toes. We would love to have you, and besides, I trained you, so we know you're good" Sharpay said proudly.

"Well, since you put it that way, I'm in, but let me ask properly" I said rising from my seat.

"Ok" Sharpay said, raising one eyebrow.

"King Ryan and Queen Sharpay" I said dramatically, using my stage voice so the entire cafeteria could hear, "if it pleases thee, I would like to ask your permission to join the drama club." I ended with a mock curtsy, and then looked up at Ry and Pay to see if they would play along. Pay tried to stifle a giggle while Ry just smiled.

"You are hereby granted acceptance into the drama club" Sharpay said while Ry knighted me with a fry.

The entire table burst into laughter while I did a little happy dance. After my dance was over, I went to find my brothers, who were sitting at the "basketball" table, discussing what I just did.

"Hey guys, what's up" I asked, sitting down between Troy and a guy named Bobby, and stealing some of Troy's fries.

"We were just wondering what that was all about" Zeke asked.

"What what was all about" I replied feigning ignorance.

"That thing with you and the drama club" Chad responded.

"Well, in case your hearing stopped working, I just joined the drama club" I said in a duh tone.

"Yeah, we heard, but why" Jason questioned.

"In case you guys forgot, I was involved in drama in elementary and middle school" I said starting to get annoyed. "And besides, at GLA, I was drama club president, head of the scholastic decathlon, and head cheerleader."

"And you plan on doing all that here" Troy asked.

"No Troy" I responded, "just drama club, and maybe scholastic decathlon, but not cheerleading."

"Why not cheerleading" Bobby asked.

"Because I really doubt my brothers would want to look over to the sidelines and see their sister shaking her butt in a skirt that's entirely too small" I told him.

I heard a chorus of "definitely not" coming from my basketball-playing brothers, and gave them a look before saying "I didn't ask for your commentary."

To which they collectively responded "sorry."

Accepting their apologies, I turned my attention back to Bobby.

"What would you say to a private dance" Bobby asked me.

"What kind of dance did you have in mind" I replied flirtatiously.

"Give me your number so I can call you and let you know" Bobby said.

"My mom still has to get me an Albuquerque number, so you should give me yours" I told him.

He wrote down his number for me, and we continued to flirt back and forth until I noticed my brothers staring with steam practically coming out of their ears

"What" I asked them annoyed.

"We need to talk" Chad said through clenched teeth.

"I'm kinda busy here" I replied.

"I don't care" he said, nodding to Troy who instantly grabbed my wrist and began dragging me out of the cafeteria.

"Sorry" I said over my shoulder to Bobby, as I tried to resist Troy, but to no avail. I decided to just follow him since fighting him only caused him to grip tighter. He didn't let go until we got out of the cafeteria.

"What exactly do you four think you're doing, I was talking to Bobby" I said angrily.

"What are we doing? No, what are you doing? You've been here one day and you're already flirting with guys, and with Bobby no less" Chad exclaimed, just as angry as I was.

"What's wrong with Bobby? Isn't he your friend" I asked them.

"Yeah, but" Troy began.

"But he's the biggest player in school" I finished for him. "Look, I've been with Pay all morning. She gave me the lowdown on everyone, and told me who to avoid, so I don't need you four going all overprotective on me."

"We just wanted to make sure you were safe. We care about you and your feelings, and don't want you to get you heart stomped on" Zeke said.

"Again" I muttered.

"What was that" Chad asked.

"Nothing, it's just that you guys still see me as a kid who needs to be protected, but I'm not. I'm sixteen, I've basically been on my own for the past three years, and I know how to protect myself" I responded, less angry than before.

"We're sorry, it's just that we've seen so many girls get hurt because of him and we don't want it to happen to you" Zeke said.

"I really do appreciate you guys trying to protect me, but I don't need it okay" I told them.

"We got it" Chad said.

"Yeah, we'll do better" Troy responded.

"That's all I ask" I replied giving them each a hug.

"Just don't sic Sharpay on us" Jason said, earning an eye roll from the guys, and a gentle shove from me.

"I won't" I said heading off to my locker smiling.

Suddenly I realized my wrist was still throbbing from where Troy held it. I looked down at it and noticed it was turning purple. Just great, how am I supposed to hide this? I look up and see Taylor and I think Gabriella heading toward me. Hoping they don't notice my arm, I try to act natural.

"Hey Kayla, I wanted to introduce you to Gabriella" Taylor said making the introductions.

Luckily, Troy was sitting on my left and grabbed that wrist, so I was able to shake hands with Gabriella.

"Hi Gabriella, I've been looking forward to meeting you all morning. I've heard so much about you" I told her.

"You can call me Gabi" she said. "I've been looking forward to meeting you too. Tay has been bragging about her amazing little sister all day."

"Well, hopefully we can get to know each other better and become sisters as well" I said.

"I would like that" she responded.

"How about we get started tomorrow" I suggested. "Maybe we could go explore Albuquerque and find something new, you know, if you guys aren't busy that is."

"Of course we're not busy" Taylor said.

"Yeah, we'd love to go exploring with you" Gabriella agreed.

"Exploring where" Sharpay asked us as she, Ryan, and Kelsi joined us.

"Oh, we were thinking of going to explore Albuquerque tomorrow. Would you and Kelsi like to join us" I asked Sharpay.

Kelsi nodded and Sharpay said yes, while giving me a strange look

"What happened to your wrist" she asked, holding up my left arm for closer inspection.

"Oh, that" I said remembering the bruise on my wrist, "it's nothing really."

"It doesn't look like nothing" Taylor exclaimed, stepping closer to get a better look. "Start explaining."

Oh great, just what I need, these two going into overprotective sister mode. They're seriously worse than Chad and the guys going into overprotective brother mode. At least I can talk the guys down quickly, but it's a lot harder with these two.

"Really guys, it was an accident" I said trying to keep them calm, "the guys saw me flirting with Bobby, and Troy dragged" I ended up getting cut off by Sharpay.

"Bolton did this" she asked, already heading toward him.

"Yes, but" I began, only to be cut off by Taylor.

"He is so dead" she said before heading off to find Troy.

Gabi and Kelsi looked back and forth between each other and Ryan and I, probably wondering what just happened.

"We don't have time to explain, we gotta go" I said grabbing Ryan and running off toward Troy, Taylor, and Sharpay, leaving Gabi and Kelsi standing at my locker confused.

When we got to Troy's locker, I had to stop and watch. Here was Troy, the school's "god," being harassed by the drama queen and the smartest girl in school all because of me. I have to admit, they still got it. Troy's standing there like a deer in the headlights while Tay and Pay tag teamed him. Tay was using her big words to confuse him, more than he already was, considering he probably doesn't have a clue as to what they're talking about, and Pay is using her finger to his chest to emphasize each of her words. After deciding Troy had suffered enough, I stepped in to help him.

"Guys lay off" I said stepping in front of Troy, "he doesn't even know he did anything."

"What is it that you think I did" Troy asked.

"This" Ryan said, holding up my arm.

"I did that" he questioned, to which I nodded.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you" he said apologetically.

"I know, I was trying to explain that to Tay and Pay, but once they heard who did it, they took off without letting me explain" I told him.

"So you forgive me" he asked giving me puppy dog eyes.

"Of course" I replied, "just don't tell Chad."

"Don't tell Chad what" Chad asked walking up with Jason and Zeke.

Darn my brother and his bad timing.

"Umm, I was just trying to convince them not to tell you that Pay is sleeping over tonight" I said, since it was the first thing that came to mind.

"The Ice Queen is sleeping over" Chad asked. "We'll have to turn the air all the way up just to make her comfortable."

His comment earned him a glare from the seven of us.

Why do people keep calling her that?

"I'm calling a family meeting immediately after your practices are over, and all of you had better be there" I said addressing my seven siblings. It's time to clear some things up.

**A/N: Please review, feedback (positive or negative) is really appreciated. Thank you.**


	4. Family Meeting

**Disclaimer: I don't own HSM or the characters, except Kayla, and HSM 2 never happened.**

Chapter 4: Family Meeting

After lunch, I decided to spend the rest of the day with Tay and Gabi since they were in all of my afternoon classes and Pay and Ry were only in one. Walking through the halls with them was a lot less eventful than walking with Ry and Pay, though I did get comments like "the Ice Princess has already revolted" or "looks like the Ice Queen has lost a minion" from a few people, but they were ignored. Anyway, Tay and Gabi had to go check on something for their decathlon meeting before our last class, leaving me alone for the first time since I checked in this morning, though it didn't last long because as soon as I closed my locker I came face to face with Chad.

"What are you doing" I screamed, holding my heart, trying to stop it from racing.

"Did I scare you" he asked smiling.

"No" I retorted sarcastically. "I just happen to scream every time I close my locker."

"Sorry" he replied, "I just wanted to let you know that b-ball practice ends at 4:30, so we'll be home after that and I'll bring Tay."

"That's fine, I have to find Ry and Pay to find out if we have drama club today, so I'll probably catch a ride with them" I told him. "Do you guys have plans tonight?"

"Troy, Jay, and I planned a triple date with Gabi, Kels, and Tay, so we need to be finished by seven so we can get ready" he replied.

"That'll work for me, although you may need to cut out early so you can tame that massive mop that you call hair" I said messing with his hair.

"Hey, you used to have a mop that was bigger than mine" he said ruffling my now straightened hair.

"Yeah, but I saw the light" I said fixing my hair, "and besides not even mom wears her hair like that anymore, and that's where we got it from."

"True, but my hair is what makes me unique, and besides" he added, "could you imagine me without it?"

" I guess you have a point there" I said, "but I have to get to class and so do you, so I'll see you at home?"

"Yup see ya" he replied as we went our separate ways.

I found my way to my last class and took a seat next to Pay.

"Hey Kay" she greeted, "how's your day been since lunch?"

"Pretty uneventful" I said. "I only ran into Chad once, so he doesn't know about the bruise yet, and he told me that practice was over at 4:30 and he'll bring Tay over. Do we have drama today?"

"Not really, Ry and I just wanted to show you around the auditorium so you could get acquainted with everything. We'll be done way before 4:30, so you, Ry, and I can hang until everyone else is done. Oh, and Chad is gonna find out eventually, so you might as well tell him" she added.

"That's fine, and he won't find out if no one tells him" I told her.

Our teacher came in then and our conversation ended. After school, Ry and Pay showed me around backstage, and we hung out in the auditorium until four when we headed to Pay's house so she could get her things for the sleepover, then we headed to my house for our family meeting.

When we got back to my house, I noticed four cars in the driveway, knowing Chad would be going crazy. Before I could even get through the door completely, Chad was in my face.

"Where have you guys been? We've been worried sick" Chad stated.

I shared a look with Pay before replying.

"Chill bro, we're here now" I said.

"Yeah Chad" Sharpay added, "I didn't know you cared so much."

"Besides" I started, trying not to laugh at the look on his face, "you told me practice would be over at 4:30, so I didn't think you guys would be here until five seeing as how you would need to shower after practice, so technically we're early."

"Well coach let us out early, so we got here early" he replied.

"Keyword is early Chad" I responded, "and I told you I would be with Ry and Pay, so I don't know why you were worried."

"Well I didn't…, you…, never mind" he stammered.

"Thank you, now can we come in so we can get this started" I asked him.

"Yeah, sorry" he said following us to the family room where everyone else was waiting.

"Hi guys" Ry, Pay, and I greeted everyone to a chorus of heys.

"Where've you been" Tay asked me.

"Exactly where I told Chad I would be, with Ry and Pay" I told her. "If he were that worried he should have called me."

"But you don't have a number yet" Troy stated.

"No, I told Bobby I didn't have a number yet" I told him. "If you remember, I told you that Sharpay had already told me all about him, so I lied and said I didn't have a number yet."

"You didn't tell us you were flirting with Bobby" Pay and Tay exclaimed.

"Actually I did, you guys were too busy hunting down Troy to hear me" I told them.

"When she's right, she's right" Ryan added, earning a glare from both Taylor and Sharpay.

"About that, I just wanted to apologize again" Troy said.

"No worries" I replied waving him off.

"Wait, why were you two hunting down Troy, and why is he sorry" Chad asked.

"I'll tell you later. Anyway, that's not why we're here" I said changing the subject. "I called this meeting because there are some things that I wanted to address."

"Such as" Chad questioned.

"Such as why you, big bro, kept referring to Pay as an Ice Queen" I said pointedly.

"Kay, really it's fine" Sharpay started.

"No Pay, it isn't" I told her. Turning my attention back to Chad, I asked him "Why do you refer to my sister as the Ice Queen?"

"Well" Chad started, "she's icy. She gives these ice cold glares and speaks in such an icy tone, and thinks she rules the school, so it just fits."

"I am not icy and I do not think I rule the school" Sharpay stated.

"Yeah Shar, you kinda do" Ryan countered, earning a glare from Pay.

"Yeah, and what you said this morning in Ms. Darbus' class wasn't in the nicest tone, but" I added, "that doesn't give you the right to call her out of her name."

"You're right Kay" Chad said. "Sharpay, I'm sorry for starting this whole Ice Queen mess, and I'll try to end it."

"Thanks Chad" Sharpay said, "and I'll try to be less icy."

"That's all we ask" I said hugging her with a smile. "Anyway, now that that's settled, what happened to you guys?"

All I got as an answer were seven blank stares.

"What are you talking about" Taylor asked.

"I'm talking about Chad and Pay not speaking to each other unless they're trading insults. I'm talking about you and Pay not speaking at all. You know, I was with you two all day and you didn't even speak to each other until you ganged up on Troy, and after that, you didn't even acknowledge each other" I said to her.

"Why were you two ganging up on Troy" Chad asked Taylor and Sharpay.

"Later Chad" Troy said.

"When I left, you guys were as thick as thieves. We were inseparable. I mean we were supposed to conquer East High together, but you guys went in three different directions. You four went and became jocks, Pay and Ry went to drama, and Tay joined the decathlon team. It's like you went your separate ways and didn't look back. When I left, I thought I would be coming back to help Tay and Pay plan their double wedding to Chad and Troy, after college of course, but now Tay and Pay don't even speak to each other. What happened to you guys? Why did you break up" I asked sitting down between Tay and Pay.

"Do you mean Troy and Sharpay or all of us" Jason asked.

"Jay, I mean all of you, though I am curious about Troy and Pay. Not that I have a problem with Gabi or anything, she seems totally cool, it's just not the same as before. I mean before, it was Pay and Troy, and Tay and Chad, now it's Tay and Chad , and Troy and Gabi, and Zeke's following Pay around like a lovesick puppy."

I mumbled the last part, but Tay and Pay both heard me and turned to me with questioning looks, so I mouthed sleepover to them and they nodded.

"So is anyone gonna tell me what happened" I asked them.

"Truth is we don't know what happened" Troy said.

"How can you not know what happened, you were there weren't you" I asked him.

"Well yeah, but once you left we just started fighting all the time" he responded.

"Wait, so you guys broke up because of me" I asked them.

"No, not exactly" Sharpay began, "it's just that without you, we realized that we really didn't have that much in common."

"Yeah" Taylor added, "before you joined us in fourth grade, Sharpay, Ryan, and I didn't speak to Chad and the guys or to each other, well Ryan and Sharpay spoke to each other, but you know what I mean."

"So what you see as us going separate directions was really us going back to who we were before you came along" Zeke said.

"So you guys weren't friends before I came to fourth grade" I asked.

"Nope" Taylor said, "you were the glue that held us together. Once you were gone, so was our glue. We came undone. We were blaming each other for you leaving a month early, and it got so bad that we just stopped talking."

"Guys, no one made me leave. It was my decision, my choice. I chose to leave early, and it was no one's fault" I told them, saying the last part directly to Zeke.

This didn't go unnoticed by Tay or Pay, who both whispered "we need to talk" in my ear. I can't do anything with those two around. They pick up on every little thing. I was planning on telling them about Zeke anyway, so oh well.

"Anyway, now that that's been taken care of, what do you guys wanna talk about" I asked them.

"I want to know why Taylor and Sharpay ganged up on Troy" Chad said.

"Can't you just let that go" I asked him.

"No" he replied, "I want to know why my girlfriend and my best friend's ex-girlfriend ganged up on him. What did he do that was so bad that it caused Taylor and Sharpay to work together?"

"Well…" I started.

"I accidentally hurt Kayla" Troy said.

"You did what" Chad asked angrily. "Why would you do that?"

"Calm down Chad" I told him. "It was an accident. He didn't even know he did anything until Tay and Pay attacked him. I didn't even know he had done anything until you guys walked away. Besides, you told him to do it."

"No I didn't, I would never tell anyone to hurt you" Chad responded defensively.

"Who's idea was it for Troy to grab my wrist" I asked him.

"Well mine, but I didn't mean for you to get hurt" Chad said.

"And you think he did" I asked him. "He probably forgot how easily I bruise, just like you did when you told him to grab me."

"Oh, sorry" he said.

'You're forgiven, just don't let it happen again" I told him. "Now four of you have dates to get ready for, so I suggest you get started."

"Yes ma'am" Taylor said. "Did you and Sharpay wanna come over and help me get ready?"

"Sure" I said.

"Ry, would you mind hanging here til I get back" Sharpay said turning to Ryan, "you can take the car and do whatever when we come back."

"That's fine" he responded, "maybe Zeke and I can catch up."

"Okay, see ya" Sharpay told him, and then we were out the door.

I'm so happy my sisters are back to being friends. Things are definitely starting to look up.

**A/N: Please review, feedback (positive or negative) is really appreciated. Thank you.**


	5. TayPayKay Sleepover

**Disclaimer: I don't own anyone but Kayla, and HSM 2 never happened.**

Chapter 5: TayPayKay Sleepover

After helping Tay get ready for her date, Pay and I drove back to my house to hang with Ry and Zeke before our sleepover. Aunt Angie, Tay's mom, said she would be more comfortable if Chad slept somewhere else while Tay slept over, so Zeke invited Chad and Ry to his house for the night, which made sense since Ry and Zeke were planning on hanging with Pay and I anyway. We spent the evening just hanging out and watching movies, reminiscing about our childhood until Chad and Tay got back. Once we kicked the boys out of the house, Tay, Pay, and I got started on our sleepover. We ran up to my room with drinks, pizza, and some of Zeke's cookies.

Picking up one of Zeke's cookies, I turned my attention to my sisters.

"Ok girls, we have food, drinks, and these delicious cookies made by Zeke. I say we get the first official TayPayKay sleepover in over three years started" I cheered, taking a bite out of my cookie.

"Yay" Tay and Pay cheered, each taking a bite of their own cookie.

"Oh my gosh, Zeke makes the absolute best cookies" I said.

"Doesn't he" Pay said giving me a look.

"What" I asked her.

"Oh, nothing" she replied.

"Speaking of Zeke" Taylor began, "what's up with you two?"

"I don't know what you're talking about" I told her.

"Well, I seem to remember detecting a hint of bitterness when you were mumbling about Zeke following Pay around like… what did you say? Oh, yeah, a lovesick puppy" Taylor said.

"Yeah, and what was up with you looking directly at Zeke when you said it was no one's fault that you left early" Sharpay questioned.

"Guys, our sleepover hasn't even been going on for ten minutes and you're already after me" I complained.

"Yup, now spill" Pay said.

"Yeah, tell your big sisters everything" Tay added.

"Fine" I said rolling my eyes, "but this does not leave this room."

"Of course not" Taylor said.

"Yeah, it'll be a TayPayKay secret" Sharpay added.

"Ok, here goes" I started. "Back in eighth grade, I kinda had a crush on Zeke."

"You had a crush on Zeke" Taylor exclaimed.

"Yes, and I'm sure you would like me to continue my story right" I asked her.

"Yeah, sorry" she said.

"Anyway, he came over one day to play ball with Chad, but he wasn't here, so Zeke decided to wait. We were talking and playing around, and one thing led to another, and I leaned over and kissed him" I told them, only to be interrupted again, this time by Sharpay.

"Oh my gosh, you kissed Zeke" Sharpay screamed.

"Yes, but he wasn't into it" I told them.

"Aww, poor thing" Taylor said.

"I felt horrible" I told them. "Here I was making a move on a guy who wasn't even interested. I was devastated when he turned me down."

"Did he hurt you? I swear I'll kill him if he did" Sharpay threatened.

"Calm down Pay" I told her. "You can't punish someone for something they did over three years ago, and besides, you know Zeke could never hurt a fly."

"She's right Pay, this is Zeke we're talking about" Taylor reasoned.

"Yeah, he was a total sweetie even as he was breaking my heart" I told her.

"Ok, so what did he say" Pay asked, finally calming down.

"Well, he said that even though he cared about me, he saw me as his little sister, and that maybe if we were different people in a different time then maybe he could see himself with me, but not then. Then he added some stuff about me being a wonderful girl, and any guy would be lucky to have me, just not him. He wanted to make sure that I was ok, and that my feelings weren't hurt" I said sadly.

"That is so Zeke" Taylor said.

"Did he hurt your feelings" Sharpay asked.

"Well yeah he hurt them, but he didn't mean to. He let me down as gently as he could" I told them, "but I was more embarrassed than hurt. So embarrassed that I asked my parents if I could go to GLA a month early."

"So you left because of Zeke" Sharpay asked.

"No, I left because of what I did to Zeke" I told her. "I couldn't face him after what I did, so I asked my parents to let me leave early. So you see, it was no one's fault but mine. If I hadn't done what I did, I wouldn't have embarrassed myself so bad that I felt I didn't have a choice but to run away."

"So did Zeke or Chad know why you left" Taylor asked.

"No, Chad doesn't even know I kissed Zeke. I told him and my parents that I needed to get acquainted with the campus and get caught up on the curriculum and everything. I managed to convince them that it would be best for me. I hated lying to them, but I had to do it. I'll never forget the look on Chad's face when my parent's told us I could leave early. He was so devastated, and I felt so bad, but I couldn't stop what I had started. I had to get out of here. I broke my brother's heart because I was being stupid and selfish" I said, tearing up a little.

"And what about Zeke" Sharpay asked as she and Taylor pulled me into a comforting hug.

"Zeke always blamed himself" I told her. "He sent a few letters through Chad asking for my forgiveness, and I always told him that there was nothing to forgive because he had done nothing wrong, but I don't think he got it until tonight."

"Which is why you told him that it was no one's fault" Taylor asked.

"Yeah, I had to make sure that he understood that it wasn't his fault" I told them wiping away my tears.

"Wow, that is so deep" Taylor said.

"Yeah, why didn't you tell us" Sharpay asked.

"Well, I was too embarrassed to tell you guys what I did" I told them.

"You know you can tell us anything Kay" Taylor said.

"Yeah, we're your sisters, and we got your back regardless" Sharpay agreed.

"I know that now" I told them.

"Ok, now that you know you can tell us anything,…" Sharpay started.

"Do you still like Zeke" Taylor finished for her.

"Aww, look at my sister's, finishing each other's sentences" I said trying to change the subject. "You guys really are back together."

"Yes we are, but don't try to change the subject on us missy" Sharpay scolded.

"Yeah, now spill" Taylor commanded.

"Yes I like Zeke. He's a wonderful person. How could anyone not like him" I said innocently.

Taylor and Sharpay looked at each other before hitting me with a pillow.

"You know what we mean" Taylor said.

"Yeah, do you or do you not still have a crush on Zeke" Sharpay asked.

"Well, it had died down when I went to GLA, but when I opened the door Sunday and saw him standing there, all those old feelings that I buried came rushing back. But I know he'll never see me as anything other than his little sister. And besides, he's so stuck on Pay he probably doesn't even notice anyone else" I told them.

"Hey, it's not my fault I'm fabulous" Sharpay said. "I've told him I'm not interested, but he won't listen."

"Pay, I'm not blaming you. We all know you were born fabulous, I'm just stating the facts. Zeke sees me as his little sister, and you as a goddess" I told her.

"Oh, that gives me an idea" Sharpay announced.

"Uh oh" Taylor and I said together.

"What uh oh" Sharpay asked.

"It's just that when you get an idea bad things tend to happen" Taylor said.

"Well not this time. I just have to plan it out first. I can't tell you what it is just yet" Sharpay told us.

"Fine, but there is something you could tell us" I told her, "or at least me."

"And just what is that" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"What happened with you and Troy" I asked her.

"What" she asked.

"You heard me. I would ask Tay about her and Chad, but they're back together, so it really doesn't matter" I informed her.

"You don't wanna know" she replied.

"Yes I do. You made me spill about Zeke, so you have to spill about Troy" I told her.

"It is only fair" Taylor interjected.

"You're only saying that because she's not asking you" Sharpay said pointing.

"That may be, but I still want to know" I told her.

"Fine, besides all the fighting we did after you left, we just grew apart. We would fight about the smallest thing, and it was just horrible. The final straw was when he blew off opening night to watch a basketball game" Sharpay said.

"And shortly after she broke up with him, she became icy towards everyone" Taylor informed me.

"It's just that he hurt me so bad, and I didn't know how to handle it, so I just shut everyone out" she explained.

"Well if it'll make you feel any better, I'll beat Troy up for you, or at least have Chad do it" I told her.

"No, I'm over it. Actually, I was trying to get back together with him, but Gabriella came along and he fell in love with her. At first I tried to break them up, but then I realized that if we're meant to be, then we'll be, and if not, then we won't" she told us.

"That's deep" I told her. "So do you think you'll be able to get along with Gabi tomorrow?"

"Of course, she's a nice person, and I'm no longer angry about Troy, so I'm sure we'll get along fine" she told me.

"Good to hear. So what do we talk about now" I asked them.

"What's there not to talk about" Taylor asked.

"Yeah, we have three years worth of catching up to do" Sharpay added.

So we spent the next few hours just talking about random things, from boys and clothes to movies and celebrities. It felt so good to be able to hang with my sisters again.

Before drifting off to sleep, I turned to my sisters and said "I'm so glad we're back together."

"So are we" they responded together. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight" I replied.

Closing my eyes, I was glad that my parents made me come home.

**Please review. Thanks a bunch.**


	6. Making Breakfast

**I do not own anyone other than Kayla, and HSM2 never happened.**

Chapter 6: Making Breakfast

After trying to go back to sleep for what seemed like hours, I finally decided to open my eyes and look at the clock Ugh, nine a.m. I looked over at Tay and Pay, they were still sleeping like babies, and if memory serves me, they will be like that for a few more hours. Oh how I envy them. I've never been able to sleep past ten a day in my life, even when I've gone to sleep at five, yet here they are quietly snoring, though they'd deny it if I told anyone. Anyway, I decided to go downstairs and watch TV, rather than stay in my room and jealously watch them sleep.

When I got downstairs, I heard noises coming from the kitchen. I figured it was one of my parents, so I went to say good morning. Imagine my surprise when I walked in and saw Zeke.

"Zeke, what are you doing here" I asked him.

He didn't answer me he just stared. Not getting a response, I asked again, this time waving my hand at him. "Zeke, what are you doing here?"

"Huh, oh, I'm making breakfast" he responded, snapping out of his trance.

"I can see that, but why are you doing it here? At my house" I asked him.

"Well your mom called Chad and said that she and your dad wouldn't be back til later today, and she wanted to let you know" he told me.

"I wonder why she just didn't call me" I said.

"She did, you just didn't answer" he told me, handing me my phone.

"Oh, I must have left it down here yesterday" I replied. "That still doesn't explain why you're here this early, and about to start cooking."

"Well yesterday, you told me you can't cook, and I know Sharpay can't cook, and while Taylor excels at dinner, she struggles with breakfast, so I figured I'd come make breakfast for you guys" he said.

He's right, I can't cook. My mom was gonna teach me when I got to high school, but I went to GLA, so we had to put my lessons on hold. Hopefully she'll be able to teach me this year, but until then, my only cooking skill involves a microwave and a bag of popcorn.

"Zeke, you didn't have to come over here and cook for us, we would have been just fine eating cereal" I told him.

"Yeah, but I wanted to. Anyway, don't you guys have some big adventure planned for today? You can't go on an adventure after just having cereal for breakfast" he reasoned.

"Fine, but you have to let me help" I told him.

"Ok, but you might wanna change first" he suggested.

"Huh, why" I asked, looking down at my clothes. Suddenly I realized how short my shorts were and how revealing my tank top was. "Oh, I'll be right back."

Running up the stairs, I decided to borrow some of Chad's clothes rather than take the risk of waking Taylor or Sharpay by going to my room to look for my own clothes. Searching through his clothes, I quickly found some of his old basketball shorts that looked too small for him, but perfect for me. Now to find a shirt. I wanted one that didn't have a saying on it, but that was hard considering almost all of his shirts have little phrases on them. The three things he'll always be remembered for are his hair, his basketball skills, and his T-shirt sayings. I finally managed to find a plain shirt in the back of his closet, and headed back downstairs.

"Took you long enough" Zeke said with a smile.

"You try finding a plain shirt in Chad's closet" I replied.

"Oh, those are Chad's clothes? Well, I can honestly say that you look ten times better in them than he ever did" he said, making me blush, "but why didn't you put on your own clothes?"

"Thank you, and I didn't put on my clothes because I didn't wanna risk waking Tay and Pay. You know how they are when people wake them up" I told him.

"Ah yes, the wicked witches of East High" he said with a laugh.

"Hey, those are my sisters you're talking about" I said giving him a playful shove, "but they are evil when you wake them up. Anyway, we're supposed to be cooking, or you are at least, so what are we gonna use to entice them out of dreamland?"

"Well, I was thinking something simple, pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, and orange juice" he said.

"You call that simple" I questioned.

"Yeah, don't you" he asked.

"No, simple is toast and instant oatmeal" I told him.

"Well, that is not how Zeke Baylor rolls" he responded.

"Ok, have it your way Mr. Baylor. I can definitely handle the orange juice, and I think my mom has pancake mix in one of these cabinets" I told him.

"NO" he yelled, looking as if I had just told him he could never cook or play basketball another day in his life.

"What's wrong" I asked him, alarmed.

"I cannot use pancake mix" he said, emphasizing the last two words. "That goes against everything I stand for."

"Well sorry, I didn't know " I said shaking my head and rolling my eyes. "What is it that you need so you can make them from scratch?"

"I need flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, milk, and cinnamon" he told me.

"Cinnamon" I asked as I started getting the ingredients for him.

"Yes, it gives them extra flavor, and makes them taste better" he replied.

"Ok, you are the expert, so you should know" I said giving him the cinnamon. "So what do you want me to do?"

"You can start by mixing the eggs with salt, pepper, and cheese" he told me, starting on his oh so precious pancakes.

"Cheese" I started, getting a raised eyebrow from him. "Never mind."

"Good, now make sure you don't use too much salt or pepper, it'll set off the whole balance" he told me.

"Do you wanna do this" I asked him.

"No, you're doing fine" he said, though he still watched me like a hawk.

"Ok, that's done, now what" I asked waiting for my next assignment.

"Set that aside, and grab the bacon and sausage out of the fridge so we can get that started" he replied, finally done with his pancake batter, and placing some on the griddle.

"Ok" I said, going to get the food. "You do know that you can give me more than one instruction at a time right? I'm not stupid and I can multi-task."

"Sorry, I'm used to working with the guys, and if you tell them more than one thing at a time, they tend to get confused, unless of course it's about basketball" he said.

"Well, I'm smarter than all of them, so stop it" I ordered.

"Yes ma'am" he replied giving me a mock salute. "In that case, put some sausage in that skillet, bacon in this one, and get another one for the eggs, but be careful with the bacon and sausage cause you could get popped."

"Popped by what" I asked as I placed another skillet on the stove with the ones Zeke had already put there.

"The grease from the bacon and sausage, just be careful" he said, turning to look at me. Noticing the look on my face, he decided to show me how to do it.

"If I get popped, I'm telling Sharpay and Taylor, and then you will be in loads of trouble" I threatened.

"Just do it like this and you'll be fine" he said, placing the food into the skillets, "and no need to bring your sisters into this. Wouldn't you rather tell Chad if you got hurt?"

"No, Chad would just do physical damage, but Tay and Pay specialize in physical, psychological, and emotional damage. That's three compared to one. You do the math" I told him, turning the bacon and sausage over, without getting popped might I add.

"You're horrible" he complained.

"And that's why you love me" I said, flicking flour at him.

"You are so gonna pay" he replied, tossing a handful back at me.

"It's on now" I replied, picking up the bag of flour.

We started having a flour fight, and were so into it that we didn't notice Taylor and Sharpay come downstairs.

"Ahem" Sharpay said, clearing her throat to get our attention. "I can appreciate waking up to the wonderful smell of breakfast, but what I don't appreciate is hearing you two shrieking before I can get to said breakfast."

"Sorry Pay, sorry Tay. We didn't mean to wake you" I apologized, putting down the flour.

"Yeah guys, we're sorry" Zeke said, wiping his hands on his pants.

"Just don't let it happen again" Sharpay replied.

"Umm, Kay, you might wanna go clean up" Taylor suggested.

"Why" I asked, picking up a spoon to examine my appearance.

"This" Zeke said, dumping more flour on me.

"You are so dead" I told him, running after him.

"Kay, I'll take care of him, then we'll take care of this kitchen. You go shower and wash your hair" Sharpay said, grabbing me and glaring at Zeke.

"Ooh, you're in trouble" I teased Zeke, as I ran past him and up the stairs.

I heard Taylor and Sharpay yelling at him as I stepped into the shower, laughing to myself. After showering, I got dressed, blow dried my hair, and headed back downstairs to what sounded like way more than the three people I had left down there. When I got downstairs, not only were Zeke, Taylor, and Sharpay there, but Chad, Ryan, Troy, and Jason as well.

"Hey guys" I greeted them.

"Hey" they all responded.

"What are you doing here" I asked.

"Zeke called and said this is where the food was, so here we are" Troy said.

"Oh" I replied.

"So sis, I heard you got Zeke in trouble with Taylor and Sharpay" Chad said coming over to me with a piece of bacon.

"No, actually he got himself in trouble" I told him, taking his bacon and eating it. "He's the one who chose to assault me in front of them after we'd just had a conversation about how dangerous they are."

"You guys were discussing how dangerous we are" Sharpay asked.

"Yeah, I told him that if I got hurt I was gonna tell you and Tay, cause you could injure people three ways" I told her.

"Well, you know how we do" Taylor said, giving Sharpay a high five.

"You guys looked so much like my brothers just now. All cocky and stuff" I said, rolling my eyes.

"Hanging around them has negative side effects I guess" Taylor replied.

"Hello, we are still in the room" Chad said.

"Aww, did we hurt your feelings" I asked, pinching his cheeks.

"No, I just don't like to be insulted" he responded.

"Sorry, Tay will make it up to you later" I told him, winking at Taylor.

"Yeah, I'll make it up to you" Taylor said, walking over and giving him a kiss.

"Eww, Tay I said later, as in when I'm not around. I so didn't need to see that" I said.

"Well get used to it, cause that's how we do things around here" Chad responded.

"Whatever. Anyway, what do you boys have planned for today" I asked them.

"Basketball" Jason said.

"Basketball" Troy said.

"And more basketball" Chad said.

"Don't you guys do anything other than play basketball" Ryan asked them.

"Uh, no" Chad replied.

"Well you should" Ryan told him.

"Yeah you guys definitely should expand your horizons" Sharpay said.

"I have to agree with Pay and Ryan. You guys should play a couple games, then go do something not related to basketball" Taylor added.

"Like what" Troy asked.

"Take in the arts or something. Do something you could talk to Ms. Darbus about" I suggested.

"You mean like go to the opera" Jason asked.

"Not necessarily" Taylor told him, "maybe go to a museum or something. Just do something different."

We spent the next hour eating and coming up with things for the guys to do until it was time for Taylor and Sharpay to get ready for our outing with Kelsi and Gabriella.

**Please review, all feedback is appreciated. Thanks **


	7. Old Albuquerque

**I only own Kayla, and HSM2 never happened.**

Chapter 7: Old Albuquerque 

Once Taylor and Sharpay were ready, we asked Ryan to drop us off at Taylor's so we could get her car. Actually, Tay and I asked and Pay told him. He agreed anyway since he had to go home and Tay's house was on the way. We got to Tay's house, said a quick hi to Aunt Angie and Uncle Eric, then were off to pick up Kelsi and Gabi. Kelsi suggested that we go to Old Albuquerque because it had amazing boutiques and antique shops, and very few people went there. Since the rest of us had never been there before, that's where we decided to go.

"So Kelsi, do these boutiques have clothes from this century, or are they all old and dusty" the ever fashionable Sharpay asked.

"Yes Shar, they have clothes from this time period" Kelsi told her.

"Pay, I'm sure Kelsi wouldn't have us go all the way out here if we couldn't get some shopping done while we explore" I told her.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure" Sharpay said.

"Anyway, not to change the subject or anything, but how was everyone's first week of school" Taylor asked us.

"Or in my case first day" I said.

"Fine, first week or first day" Taylor said rolling her eyes at me in the rearview mirror.

"Well my first day of school was eventful. I spent the morning being called an Ice Princess, joined the drama club, got into it with my overprotective brothers, saved one of said brothers from being hurt by my overprotective sisters, helped put my family back together, and ended with a TayPayKay sleepover" I said.

"Who called you an Ice Princess" Taylor and Sharpay asked at the same time as Kelsi and Gabriella asked "What's a TayPayKay sleepover?"

"Just random kids when I was walking the halls with Ry and Pay" I said answering Taylor and Sharpay's question first.

"Well we'll just have to deal with them on Monday" Sharpay said.

"Pay, you won't get rid of your Ice Queen label if you go around harassing people just because they say something mean to or about me. Besides, I can take care of myself" I told her.

"Fine I won't attack them, but I still don't like it" Sharpay responded.

"And you don't have to. We can't protect her forever, and she said she can take care of herself so let her prove it" Taylor told her.

"But she doesn't need to take care of herself with us around. That's what older siblings are for" Sharpay countered.

"But if she doesn't learn to take care of herself with us around, how will she be able to take care of herself when we're not around" Taylor asked her.

"Uh guys, I'm right here" I said waving my hand in the air. "Thanks for looking out for me, but I really don't need it. I'm a big girl, and I can handle myself."

"We'll back off, right Sharpay" Taylor said eyeing Pay through the rearview mirror.

"Yeah, but if I feel the need to step in, I will" Sharpay replied.

"I wouldn't expect anything less" I told her.

"Sorry to break up this warm, fuzzy moment, but Kelsi and I want to know what a TayPayKay sleepover is" Gabriella said.

"Oh, sorry. A TayPayKay sleepover is when Taylor, Sharpay, and I sleep over at each other's houses, and pig out and talk about boys and life. We used to have them every weekend before I moved" I told them.

"Ok, but why is it called a TayPayKay sleepover? It sounds like a regular sleepover to me" Kelsi said.

"Well it is, but we call it that because it's our group's name" Taylor said.

"Your group" Gabriella asked.

"Yeah, see we're all younger sisters and we were tired of being bossed around and everything, so we decided to join forces and formed TayPayKay, only I still ended up being bossed around because I'm the youngest" I told them.

"Wait, Shar you're younger than Ryan, and he used to boss you around" Kelsi asked.

"Is that so hard to believe" Sharpay asked.

"Yes" Gabi and Kelsi responded at the same time.

"Well it's true" Sharpay said.

"So how'd you come up with TayPayKay" Kelsi asked.

"Since Taylor is the oldest, she insisted that her name come first" Sharpay said.

"And of course Sharpay just had to be center of attention" Taylor added.

"And as the youngest, I didn't have much say in the matter" I said. "Plus it sounded better than the other combinations we came up with."

"Oh, that makes sense" Gabriella said.

"So, how was everyone else's week" I asked.

"Definitely not as eventful as your day" Kelsi said.

"Yeah, nothing really happened that's worth mentioning" Gabriella added.

"Yeah, my week was pretty uneventful until yesterday" Sharpay said.

"Mine too" Taylor agreed.

"Well, it's a good thing I'm back then, now you guys can have some fun in your lives" I teased.

"Whatever" Sharpay said rolling her eyes.

"Hey Taylor pull over, there's a really nice antique shop right here" Kelsi said.

"Is it okay if we park here and walk wherever we want to go" Taylor asked us.

"Um, have you seen the shoes I'm wearing" Sharpay asked pointing to her heels.

"Pay, I can't actually see your shoes, but I told you not to wear heels" Taylor said.

"Which is why I brought these" I said passing Sharpay some cute pink flats that matched her outfit perfectly.

"Oh my gosh, Kay these are adorable" Sharpay exclaimed as she switched shoes.

"I know. Now if everyone is ready, let's start exploring" I said.

We got out and went to the antique shop Kelsi suggested, and I immediately found the cutest necklace, which I showed to everyone, earning squeals from them. That's pretty much how our shopping experience went. One of us would find something, and the rest of us would squeal and talk about how cute it was.

By the time we were finished, I had five shirts, two pairs of jeans, and loads of jewelry. I also picked up some items for my parents and Chad. There was a shirt that both Taylor and I wanted to get for Chad, and after a bit of back and forth between us, Sharpay suggested that we both chip in and buy it.

Now we're sitting at an outdoor café eating and hanging out.

"So guys, what do you want to do when we're done here" Taylor asked.

We all looked at Kelsi, who responded by rolling her eyes.

"Maybe we could catch a movie at the old theater down the road. The only catch is they only play old movies" Kelsi informed us.

"That's fine as long as it's good" Sharpay responded, earning an eye roll from the four of us.

"Anyway, how do you guys like Old Albuquerque" Kelsi asked us.

"It's beautiful" I said.

"Yeah, amazing" Taylor added.

"It's absolutely gorgeous, and there's not a lot of people down here, so it feels like you're in a private place or something" Sharpay said.

"I love it. I can't believe you guys have lived here your entire lives and have never been down here" Gabriella said.

"Hey, in my defense, I've been gone for the past three years" I said.

"Yeah, yeah, you can't use that as an excuse missy" Taylor said.

"Well, what's your excuse then" I asked her. "You've lived here for almost eighteen years straight."

"We just didn't know it existed" Sharpay answered for her.

"Whatever" I said sticking my tongue out at her and Taylor, a gesture they promptly returned.

"Very mature ladies" Gabriella said. "So Kayla, why did you decide to come back to Albuquerque?"

"I didn't decide, my parents did, not that I'm not happy to be back cause I definitely am" I said.

"Well what happened" Taylor asked.

"Yeah, you didn't tell us yesterday" Sharpay added.

"I had enough credits at GLA to graduate and go to college, so I lost my scholarship, but my mom didn't want me to go to college yet, cause according to her I'm entirely too young" I told them.

"You've lived across the country by yourself since you were thirteen, but you're too young to go to college" Kelsi stated questioningly.

"I know. That was the point my dad and I made, but my mom said that a boarding school dorm and a college dorm have one big difference, supervision. Eventually, she convinced my dad that the sooner his baby girl went to college, the sooner his baby girl would leave him, so he made me come home" I said.

"So, if you could choose between East High and college, which would you choose" Taylor asked.

"Definitely East High. When my mom said I couldn't go to college, she didn't mention East High. That wasn't brought up until she got my dad on board. I was under the impression that I would just be sitting around the house, or helping her at her office. Talk about boring" I said.

"Aww, you would choose us" Sharpay said.

"Of course. Besides, who wants to graduate from college before they hit eighteen" I asked.

"Before eighteen" Kelsi asked.

"Yeah, I'm sixteen now, which would have been my first year, and I turn seventeen in June, so I would turn eighteen like a month after I graduated" I responded.

"But that's only two years" Sharpay said.

"I know. In tenth and eleventh grade, I only took AP classes, and half my classes at East High are AP as well, so I'll be starting college as a junior" I said.

"Aww, look at you, little miss over-achiever" Taylor teased.

"Hey, I learned from the best" I told her. "Haven't you cut time off your sentence?"

"Yeah, but I only managed to knock off a year and a half" Taylor replied.

"Well, some of us actually have lives and haven't cut off any" Sharpay said.

"Whatever Pay. Anyway, let's head down to the movie theater and see what's playing" Taylor suggested.

We were finished eating, so we all agreed. We dropped our bags off in Tay's car, then headed off to the theater. Luckily, they were playing one of my favorite old movies, Casablanca, so the five of us decided to watch it.

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think about the story. Thank you  
**


	8. A Moment With the Danforths

**I only own Kayla, Charles, Alisha, Eric and Angie, and HSM2 never happened.**

Chapter 8: A Moment With The Danforths

After Casablanca ended, we decided that it was time to leave Old Albuquerque, so we hopped into Tay's car and headed back home.

"Hey, are you guys up for a sleepover at my house tonight" Taylor asked us once we got back to our side of town.

"Sure" Sharpay, Gabriella, and Kelsi said.

"I want to, but my parents might not let me" I said.

"Why not, you aren't grounded are you" Taylor asked.

"No, but my mom has been on this kick to have me at home all the time. I think that's why she wouldn't let me tell you guys I was back. She wants to keep me to herself" I told her.

"Aww, your mommy loves you and doesn't want to share you" Taylor teased.

"Whatever. Anyway, if you and Pay were to come over and talk to her she might let me come" I said.

"Oh, so now you need us to back you up huh" Sharpay asked.

"Pay, come on, don't be like that. Tay and I have my dad wrapped around our fingers, and my mom could never say no to you and Chad, so I need Tay to help me talk to my dad, since he'll be easier to win over, and then get Chad to talk to my mom with you" I replied. "Don't you want me to come?"

"Oh, alright fine, but you owe me" Sharpay said.

"Of course Sharpay, and I'll owe you too Tay" I responded.

"No need, I'll get payment from Chad" Taylor said with a sly smile.

"Ok fine, but no details" I told her.

"If that's the way you want it" she replied. "Anyway, Gabi, Kels, do you guys wanna go home or go to Kay's?"

"Could you drop us off at Gabi's, we have some homework to finish up" Kelsi said.

"Yeah, then we'll walk to your house" Gabriella added.

"Ok, but are you sure you wanna walk to my house" Taylor asked.

"Of course, we'll be fine" Gabriella said.

So we dropped them off at Gabi's, then headed off to my house.

"Hi mommy, hi daddy" I said greeting my parents.

"Hi girls, how was your outing" my mom asked us.

"It was fantastic. Mommy, they have some amazing shops down in Old Albuquerque" I told her.

"Judging from your bags, I doubt there's anything left in those shops" my dad said.

"Daddy please. If you're that concerned, then I can just take this back" I said holding out a bag of things I had picked up for him.

"Uh, that's ok baby, we wouldn't want you girls to have to drive all the way back down there" he replied, taking the bag and going through it.

"And mommy, I got some things for you too" I said passing my mom a bag.

"Aww, sweetie, you didn't have to get me anything" she replied, still taking her bag.

"I wanted to though. Where's Chad" I asked.

"He's right here" Chad said coming into the living room, looking at my bags. "You went shopping and only came back with three bags?"

"Hey, we went exploring, and it just so happened that where we went exploring had amazing little shops. And actually, I came back with five bags, but only two are for me" I informed him, handing him his bag. "The red shirt in there is from me and Tay."

"Yeah, these two spent like five minutes arguing over who would get it for you before I suggested they both buy it" Sharpay said.

"Aww, my two favorite girls were arguing over little old me, don't I feel special" Chad said putting an arm around Tay and I.

"Whatever, I just figured that since I was doing something nice for mom and dad I would do something nice for my annoying older brother" I teased him.

"You know you love me" Chad said.

"You keep telling yourself that if it helps you sleep at night" I told him, taking his arm off of me.

"Say you love me" he said with an evil look in his eye.

"No" I said, moving across the room.

"Say it or else" he replied, advancing toward me.

"Or else what" I asked.

"Or else this" he said tickling me.

"Daddy make him stop" I said laughing.

"Sorry baby girl, you started it" my dad replied.

"Just admit that you love me" Chad said, intensifying his tickling.

"No. Mommy help me" I said, with tears of laughter streaming down my face.

"Honey, just say you love him and he'll stop" my mom replied.

"No. Tay, Pay help please" I said, using my last lifeline.

"Sorry Kay, you told us you could handle yourself" Sharpay said, using my words against me.

"Just say it and I'll stop Kayla" Chad said, still tickling me.

"Fine, I love you Chad, now stop" I said, finally admitting my defeat.

"Thank you, I love you too. Now, who's your favorite brother" he asked, no longer tickling me, but still holding me down.

"Troy" I said defiantly.

"Wrong answer" Chad responded, not letting up.

"Fine, Ryan" I said.

"One more wrong answer and I start tickling again" Chad threatened.

"Fine, you are my favorite brother" I said.

"Are you two done yet" Sharpay asked.

"Aww Pay, they were just having a brother/sister moment" Taylor said.

"Yeah, don't you and Ryan have those" Chad asked her, finally letting me up.

"Of course, just not in front of anyone" Sharpay said. "Speaking of Ry, where is he?"

"He went home. The guys and I are going to see a play tonight, so everyone went home to change" he told her.

"Nice to see you guys taking our advice" Taylor said.

"Yeah, Ryan convinced us that this play wouldn't be too bad, so we agreed" Chad told us.

"Ok, we know what the boys are doing, so what do you girls have planned for tonight" my dad asked.

"Actually, we were gonna have a sleepover at Tay's" I told him.

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea honey. You know I want you at home, and didn't you guys have a sleepover last night" my mom asked.

"Yes we had a sleepover yesterday, but that was only me, Pay, and Tay, this one is us three plus Gabi and Kelsi. Plus we were here yesterday" I told her.

"I'm still not sure" my mom replied. "Besides, we wouldn't want to inconvenience Angie and Eric."

"But T-T, my mom already said it would be ok" Taylor said.

"Still, I don't know" my mom said, not moving an inch.

"Daddy talk to her please" I said, deciding to work my dad since my mom wouldn't budge.

"I'm sorry, but I want you home too sweetie" my dad said.

"But Uncle Charles, we haven't seen her in three years. We have so much to catch up on" Taylor told him.

"Tay, I know but" my dad started.

"Please daddy" I said in a baby voice, giving him puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah, please Uncle C" Taylor said, also giving him puppy dog eyes.

"No, not the puppy dog eyes" my dad said, trying to avoid looking at us. "Fine, just stop looking at me like that. I'm on board as long as you can convince your mother to let you go."

"Thank you daddy" I said, hugging him and nodding at Sharpay.

"Yeah, thank you Uncle C" Taylor said, also giving him a hug, and mouthing "help her" to Chad while pointing at Sharpay.

"T-T, please let her come, it won't be much fun without her" Sharpay said.

"Girls, I know you want to hang out, but I really want Kayla at home" my mom said, still not budging.

"Mom, we've had her for an entire week, they've only been together for one day after being apart for three whole years. She needs to be with her sisters too" Chad said, earning a thank you from me.

"Well I" my mom said, her resolve weakening, which Sharpay pounced on.

"Please T-T Lisha" Sharpay said, giving her puppy dog eyes.

"Now Pay, do not T-T Lisha me or give me those eyes" my mom said sternly, even though we could all see that she was about to cave.

"Please mommy" I pleaded.

"Yeah, please T-T" Taylor said.

"Oh Alisha, for goodness sake, let the girl go" my dad said.

"Fine, but next Saturday, you're all mine" my mom said.

"Thank you mommy" I said, running up to my room to pack my bag.

"Thank you T-T" Sharpay and Taylor said, following me upstairs.

Once my bag was pack, we said goodbye to my parents, then headed to Taylor's, dropping Chad off at Zeke's on the way. When Gabi and Kelsi got to Taylor's, we ordered pizzas, then talked until we each drifted off to sleep.

**Please remember to review, your feedback is very important to me. Thank you  
**


	9. Getting to Know Gabi and Kelsi

**A/N: Starting with this chapter, time will fast forward one to three weeks, sometimes one week later and sometimes two or three. If it gets confusing, I can add dates, or if you just want me to, I'll do it. Just let me know.**

**Only original characters are mine, and HSM2 never happened. Enjoy.**

Chapter 9: Getting to Know Gabi and Kelsi

_A week later…_

"Kay, do you guys have to get together tonight" Jason whined for the fifth time.

"Yeah, why can't you do it tomorrow" Troy asked.

"Yes we have to get together tonight, and no we can't do it tomorrow. I already told you that I have to spend tomorrow with my mom because I went to the sleepover at Tay's last weekend" I said, annoyed at having this conversation with them yet again.

Tonight, Gabi, Kelsi, and I are hanging out so we can get to know each other better, well so I can get to know them and they can get to know me, since they already know each other. Of course their boyfriends don't like it since Friday is "date night," but oh well. Most guys would be glad that their sister is taking the initiative to get to know their girlfriend, but not my brothers. They've been whining about me "stealing" their girls since they found out they had to spend one Friday night without them. You would think that they'd never see them again with the way they've been acting. I swear those boys are sprung.

"Well why does Chad still get Taylor tonight" Jason questioned.

"Chad gets Tay because I don't need to get to know his girlfriend" I told him.

"Hey guys, what are you talking about" Chad asked walking up with Gabi and Tay.

"These two are trying to get me to break my "date" with Gabi and Kelsi" I said pointing to Jason and Troy.

"Again" Taylor asked.

"Guys we've been through this. Kelsi and I want to get to know Kayla" Gabi started.

"And I want to get to know them outside of being your girlfriends" I added.

"Well I still don't think it's fair that Chad gets to keep his girl, and we get ours taken away" Troy said pouting.

"Excuse you, you're talking about us like we're toys or something" Taylor said.

"And you sound like a five year old" I added.

"And it's not like we can't go out tomorrow" Gabi said.

"But it's not the same. What are we supposed to do without dates on a Friday night" Troy questioned.

"Umm, here's an idea, just hang out" Tay said.

"That's easy for you to say, you still get to go on your date" Jason said.

"Troy, J, get over it, there's no way you're gonna win" Chad said.

"Do you guys not want your favorite little sister to get along with your girlfriends, or would you rather we feel uncomfortable when we're around each other" I asked them.

"Well, when you put it that way" Jason started.

"Fine, but Kay you so owe us" Troy said.

"What, having your girlfriend get along with your little sister isn't enough" I asked them.

They looked at each other before responding "No."

"Well, what do you want" I asked.

"Give us a minute" Jason answered, walking away with Troy, as Pay, Kelsi, Ryan, and Zeke walked up.

"What are they doing" Pay asked.

"Discussing Kayla's payment for taking Kelsi and I away from them tonight. Like we aren't gonna go whether they want us to or not" Gabi said.

"Are they still whining about that" Kelsi asked. "Kayla, you know you don't have to fulfill whatever request they make right?"

"Yeah, but I thought I would humor them" I said as Troy and Jason rejoined us. "So what do I owe you?

"We get to interrogate your next possible boyfriend' Troy said.

"Umm, that's what I have Chad and Pay for, and besides, there are no prospects on the horizon" I told him.

"Hey, what do you mean by you have Chad and Pay for that, we aren't that bad" Chad said.

"Yeah, you are" Tay responded.

"Yeah, do you remember James back in sixth grade" I asked them.

"In our defense, he was a total creep" Sharpay said.

"And it's not our fault he couldn't handle a few questions" Chad added.

"Who's James" Gabi asked.

"I'll tell you tonight" I told her.

"Ok" she replied.

"Are we done here, I'm hungry" Pay said.

"Yeah, but Kayla you still owe us" Troy said.

"Whatever" I said as we began making our way to the cafeteria.

TWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWIST

_After school_

Drama club hasn't started yet because there's nothing to do until Ms. Darbus announces which show we'll be putting on, and that won't happen for another two weeks. Sharpay has already informed me that as her sister, I am expected to put in a ton of work, so I am supposed to be enjoying the little free time I have left. Right now, Kelsi and I are sitting on East High's fountain waiting for Gabi to finish her decathlon practice. Soon, we saw Gabi and Tay heading toward us with four of my brothers.

"Hey guys" Kelsi and I greeted them as they reached us.

"Hey" they responded.

"Have you two been waiting long" Gabi asked Kelsi and I.

"No, we actually just got here a little while ago" Kelsi said.

"Yeah, we were in the library doing homework" I added.

"Well, are you ready to go then" Gabi asked us.

"Yup, let's get this party started" I said.

"Gabi, are you sure I can't convince you to come with me" Troy said, giving Gabi puppy dog eyes.

"Troy, the eyes won't work this time. I'm going with Kayla" Gabi said.

"And J, you can stop with the eyes as well, cause I'm going too" Kelsi said to Jason, who was also giving puppy dog eyes, without looking at him.

"But how did you know? You didn't even look at me" Jason said.

"Because I know you that's how" Kelsi said.

"You guys are very persistent, but give it up. The three of us are hanging out tonight. You two should use tonight to plan an awesome date for Gabi and Kelsi for tomorrow" I told Troy and Jason.

"Hey, that's a good idea" Troy said with Jason nodding in agreement.

"Ok, now that that's settled, shall we" I asked Gabi and Kelsi.

"We shall" they said as they linked arms with me.

"Hey, no goodbye kiss" Troy called as we started walking away.

Gabi, Kelsi, and I looked at each other, then they nodded at me.

"Sorry guys, where are our heads, come here" Gabi said as we unlinked arms and turned around.

Once they got close to us, I leaned forward and gave Troy and Jason a kiss on the cheek

"Bye" I called over my shoulder as Kelsi, Gabi, and I ran off to Kelsi's car laughing.

"Hey that's not what we meant" Jason said as we got into the car and dove off.

"Guys hand me your cell phones" I said to Gabi and Kelsi.

"Huh, why" Kelsi asked.

"Because if I know your boyfriends, they'll be calling you in 5 4 3 2 1" I said just as both of their phones started ringing.

"Here you go" they said, passing me their phones.

"Thank you" I said as I answered both phones. "Hey Troy, hi J. I know you were expecting to hear the voices of your lovely girlfriends, but their phones are currently in my possession and will not be returned until we feel we know each other. I'm sure they will call you the moment we're finished, but don't call them because they won't answer. Love you lots. Bye."

"Oh my god Kayla, that was so funny. You sounded like an answering service" Gabi said.

"It didn't even sound like you let them get a word in. Did they even get to say hi" Kelsi asked.

"No, they didn't, and now I feel kinda bad. I'll have to find some way to make it up to them" I said.

"Don't feel bad, they deserved it" Gabi said.

"I still have to think of something nice to do for them" I responded.

"Well while you're thinking, let's go talk" Kelsi said as we pulled up to her house.

After greeting Kelsi's mom, we headed up to her room.

"Ok, how do we wanna do this" I asked.

"How about we just ask each other specific questions rather than telling each other our life stories in sixty seconds like we do when we start new schools" Gabi suggested.

"Oh, so you don't wanna hear, hi my name is Kayla Danforth, I just transferred from GLA, etc, etc. Cause I have it memorized from last week" I said jokingly.

"No, I have memorized your speech as well. Why does every teacher make you say that speech like everyone doesn't already know it" Gabi said

"It especially sucks when the new kid is in all of your classes. It's not like you learn anything new, no one is ever creative with those things anyway" Kelsi added.

"As the resident new kid, I can say that as much as you guys don't wanna keep hearing it, we don't wanna keep saying it" I said.

"Oh, Kayla, I didn't mean you, I just meant in general" Kelsi said apologetically.

"Kelsi, I didn't take it personally, I know what you meant" I told her.

"Ok, since you are the resident new kid, I think you should ask the first question" Gabi said.

"Kelsi, I'll start with you. Where do you get the inspiration for your music" I asked.

"What do you mean" Kelsi asked.

"Well, Chad sent me a copy of Twinkle Towne, and those songs you wrote were filled with so much passion, it couldn't have just popped into your head, so where did it come from" I replied.

"That was Troy and Gabi's chemistry, not my songs" Kelsi said.

"Come on Kelsi, those songs were great, Troy and I just gave your words a voice" Gabi said.

"Yeah Kelsi, while Troy and Gabi did an excellent job, you wrote those songs" I added.

"Fine, since you two won't leave this alone, I got the inspiration from my parents. They grew up together and were best friends since they were in diapers. They had seen each other through numerous relationships, and one day they realized that the person they had been looking for had been right in front of them" Kelsi explained.

"But Arnold and Minnie had to go through obstacles, and break out of their cliques. If your parents grew up together, what cliques did they have to break out of, if you don't mind my asking" I said.

"I don't mind. It wasn't cliques they had to break out of, it was social standing. My mom's mom was my dad's nanny, which is why they were raised together. My dad was part of the upper class, and my mom was part of the working class, so it was socially unacceptable, but they broke through that and here I am" Kelsi said.

"Aww, how romantic" Gabi said.

"That's the stuff movies are made of" I added.

"Ok, enough about me and my inspiration. Gabi, I have a question for you. If you could be anywhere in the world other than here, where would it be" Kelsi asked.

"Definitely Italy. It's so incredibly amazing, there's the history in Rome, plus the fashion in Milan. Italy is also the place where my parents met, so I've always wanted to see the places they visited when they met and fell in love" Gabi said.

"Wow that's so sweet" Kelsi said.

"Yeah, that's special. This is so completely unfair. Your parents have these amazing, special love stories, while mine were just high school sweethearts, and stereotypical ones at that, head cheerleader and football captain" I complained.

"Kay, that's special. Your parent's give us hope" Gabi said.

"Yeah, not many people who were high school sweethearts get married. It usually doesn't work out" Kelsi added.

"I guess you guys are right" I said, done complaining.

"Ok, this doesn't count as my question, but you promised to tell me who James is" Gabi said.

"James" Kelsi asked.

"Yeah Kelsi, you remember James, James Washington from sixth grade" I told her.

"Oh that James, he was a jerk" Kelsi said.

"I've gathered that he was a bad guy, but what did Chad and Sharpay do to him and why" Gabi asked.

"Well, back in sixth grade, I thought I had a crush on him. To me, he was the cutest guy in our class, though most girls said it was Troy and Chad, which I didn't and still don't see. Anyway, he started paying me attention and giving me compliments, and one day I invited him over to my house to study. Chad was already there, and Sharpay just "happened" to drop by because she just had to have some top of mine. While Pay and I went to find the shirt, Chad decided to have a "chat" with him. Next thing I know, Pay and I hear this loud bang. Pay goes to check it out and tells me to keep looking for the shirt. All of a sudden, I hear more bangs, and Pay yelling. I went downstairs and found Chad slamming him up against the wall and Sharpay was going off on him about something. Apparently, when Chad asked him what he was planning to do with me, he told him that he was just trying to score points with Tay. That didn't fly with Chad, and he told Pay when she got down there" I explained.

"Wow. What did Taylor say when she found out" Gabi asked.

"She didn't find out because we didn't tell her what James said, just that he said things Chad and Pay didn't like, and that I no longer had a crush on him" I said.

"Oh, well did Sharpay get the shirt" Gabi asked.

"She already had the shirt. She and Chad planned the whole thing. They thought he was up to no good, so they decided that Pay would distract me while Chad talked to James" I told her.

"Imagine that. Chad and Sharpay working together" Kelsi said.

"They're extremely protective of me, and tend to put their differences aside when necessary" I responded.

"Which leads me to my actual question for you. Are you as protective of your siblings as they seem to be of you" Gabi asked.

"What do you mean" I asked her.

"Well, I've seen them in action. Chad and Sharpay are ready to pounce if someone looks at you sideways, Troy and Taylor get set off if you have so much as a scratch, and Zeke, Jason, and Ryan may not be as quick to fight, but from what I've seen, they're just as protective" Gabi said.

"Ahh, you've noticed the hierarchy of protection. I don't think I'm as bad as Troy and Taylor, and definitely not as bad as Chad and Pay, but I am quicker to fight than Zeke, J, and Ry. Only I've never threatened anyone because I thought they might hurt one of my siblings" I said.

"No, you just beat them up if they actually hurt one of them" Kelsi responded.

"Kelsi shh" I said.

"What are you two talking about" Gabi asked.

"Oh, just Jessica Reynolds" Kelsi replied.

"I can't tell her about Jessica" I complained.

"It's too late for that. I'm already curious, so now you have to tell me" Gabi stated.

"Fine, Jessica was this girl I beat up in eighth grade" I said.

"Ok, but what does that have to do with you being protective of your siblings" Gabi asked.

"Tell her why you beat her up" Kelsi said smiling.

"Kelsi you're impossible. I beat her up because she broke up with Ryan. She was totally mean. She called him an ugly, no-talent loser who would be a nobody if it weren't for his sister. She's lucky that it was me who found Ryan crying and not Sharpay. Plus I didn't like her anyway, so she already had a strike against her, and hurting him gave her two more, so she was out" I told her.

"Wow, so you beat her up cause she broke up with your brother. You wouldn't do that to us would you" Gabi asked.

"No, I like you guys. Plus, I doubt my brothers would even allow it" I answered. "Just don't call them ugly no-talent losers if you do break up with them."

"Ok, now that we've been warned, Kayla it's back to you for a question" Kelsi said.

And that's how we continued for the rest of the night until Chad and Taylor came to take Gabi and I home after their date. I gave Gabi and Kelsi back their phones and told them to call their boyfriends immediately. Hopefully Troy and Jason won't be too mad at me.

**Please remember to review, it means alot. Thank you**


	10. Auditions

**I only own Kayla, and HSM2 never happened.**

Chapter 10: Auditions

_Two weeks later…_

It's been two weeks since my "get to know you" day with Gabi and Kelsi. The three of us are a lot closer now. Actually, we're all a lot closer. The five of us girls have weekly sleepovers together now, though Taylor, Sharpay, and I sometimes get together an hour or so beforehand if we want to talk about something we can't talk about with Gabi or Kelsi. They've been let in on most of our secrets, but there are still some that we have to keep for now. Sometimes we hang just us girls, and sometimes we hang with the guys. Since we can't sit and talk together in class, lunch is the only time the ten of us can get together. The second week of school, we tried to get together everyday at lunch, but between basketball and decathlon practice, the only people who made it everyday were Kelsi, Ry, Pay, and I. Eventually, we decided to just get together on Monday and Friday, or if something big was going on. Since today is Monday, and there is something big going on, I expect everyone will make it to lunch.

"Hey guys" I said as I sat down, joining Pay, Ry, and Kelsi who were already seated.

"Hey Kayla" they all responded.

"Kelsi, I'm sorry your script didn't get picked" I said.

"Don't be, it's not like you had a vote. Ms. Darbus has been wanting to do this since forever, and now that there's enough interest in drama club, she had to act on it. Besides, this gives me time to get everything the way I want it for next time" Kelsi told me.

"Well in that case, I look forward to one day performing your work" I said with a smile.

"Hey guys, what are you talking about" Taylor asked as she and everyone else joined us.

"Just Ms. Darbus' drama selection" I said.

"I'm surprised she chose a musical" Ryan said.

"What's wrong with her picking a musical" Gabi asked.

"We usually have a fall play, not an autumn musicale" Kelsi told her.

"Is it really that big a deal that she decided to have an autumn musicale instead of a fall play" Chad asked her.

"Not really, it's just tradition" Kelsi responded.

"Well all traditions aside, I'm happy we finally get to do Grease" Sharpay said.

"Me too, so who's all auditioning" Ryan asked.

"I'm definitely in. Grease is one of my favorite musicals" Gabi said.

"And of course Ryan and I are trying out" Sharpay said, with Ryan nodding in agreement.

"I'm going for it since last year was so much fun" Troy said.

"I'm in too. Grease is so much fun to put on" I said.

"You've done Grease before" Kelsi asked.

"Yeah, I was Sandy. I'm trying to figure out who I want to try out for" I said.

"You don't want to be Sandy again" Gabi asked.

"Nope, she was too much of a goody-goody for me. And as my old drama teacher says, a true artist can never grow if she plays the same role" I said.

"If you don't want to be Sandy, you should definitely go for Rizzo. She's the school's bad girl, and you'll get to look older" Sharpay suggested.

"I have always liked Rizzo, I think she's just misunderstood, not bad. But why do I need to look older" I asked her.

She looked at Zeke out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh" I said, "so is anyone else trying out?"

Taylor, Jason, Zeke, and Chad just looked at each other.

"No" Taylor said, answering for all of them.

"Not even you Chad" I asked.

"Kayla, you really have been gone too long" Troy said.

"Yeah, Chad doesn't sing" Jason said.

"Or dance" Zeke added.

"He doesn't" I asked.

"Well, he dances at school dances and parties, but that's it" Taylor said.

"Oh, is that so" I said turning to look at Chad.

"Kay, can I talk to you, over there" Chad asked, pointing to a quiet corner of the cafeteria.

"Sure" I said getting up and following him.

"Kay, you can't tell them that I can sing, or dance for that matter" he told me.

"Why not, you're really good" I responded.

"It's just I can't, not after" Chad started, looking over at our table.

"Oh, I see. You don't want people to think you're doing this because Troy did it" I said.

"Well yeah. I mean when Tay and I started dating again, people said it wouldn't last because I was trying to be like Troy, you know, date a smart girl. But it's not like that" he said.

"Well, what if you had to audition, and everyone knew that you had no choice, and that Troy had nothing to do with it, would you do it then" I asked.

"Yeah, but how would that happen" Chad asked me.

"Leave that to me. Little sister is on the case" I said, grabbing his wrist and heading back to our table.

"So, did you guys have a good chat" Taylor asked as Chad and I sat back down.

"Yep, we decided that Chad would audition" I said.

"We what" Chad asked.

"You heard me" I replied.

"But Chad doesn't sing or dance" Troy said.

"Actually, he does, and very well might I add" I told him.

"Seriously, you sing" Zeke asked Chad.

"Yup" Chad responded.

"And dance" Sharpay asked.

"Yes, but I'm not auditioning" Chad said.

"Oh yes you are" I told him.

"No I'm not, and there's nothing you can do to make me" he responded.

"Oh really? I think mom and dad would be interested in that little secret you told me two years ago" I threatened.

"You wouldn't" Chad said.

"I would. You do what I want, or I go singing to mom and dad" I said.

"Fine, I'll do it, but you take that secret to the grave" Chad responded.

"You participate in the musical, and we have a deal" I said.

"I thought I just had to audition" Chad complained.

"You agree to my terms, or the deal is off" I told him.

"Fine, I'll audition and do the musical if I get a part" he said.

"Of course you'll get a part" I told him.

"Whatever" he responded, shaking his head.

"Wow Kay, blackmailing your brother to get what you want. You've made me so proud" Sharpay said, wiping away pretend tears.

"Hey, what can I say? They taught me the art of negotiation at GLA" I replied.

"Well, I just want everyone to know that I am being blackmailed into participating in the musical" Chad said loud enough for our table, as well as those around us to hear, while nodding at me.

"Whatever, no one cares" I said, nodding back at him as word that Chad Danforth was being blackmailed into participating in the autumn musicale.

Of the eight people sitting with us, only Taylor noticed our small gesture.

TWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTBTWISTB

_That Friday, Audition Day _

Since auditions were during lunch, we decided to all meet up in the auditorium. Six of us were auditioning, three were coming to cheer us on, and Kelsi was coming to play for everyone. Taylor and I were the first to arrive, and took a seat in the back.

"Do you wanna tell me why you and Chad have been lying to everyone since Monday" Taylor asked me.

"Tay, what are you talking about" I asked her.

"I'm talking about Chad auditioning. Why is he really doing it" she asked.

"He's doing it because I'm blackmailing him" I said plainly.

"No you're not" she said.

"What? You were there, you heard what I said to him" I told her.

"Yeah, I heard what you said, but I also saw what you did, nodding at each other" she told me.

"Oh, you saw that" I asked.

"Yeah, and I know that you would never spill someone's secret, so threatening to tell your parents was a lie. I also know that you love your brother and would do anything for him, and would never blackmail him, so what's up" Taylor asked me.

"Ok, this has to stay between me and you, but there is no secret. I just said that because Chad really wanted to audition, but he" I started.

"Didn't want people to think he was doing it because Troy did it" Taylor finished for me. "I heard what people said about us when we got back together."

"Oh" I said, wondering how Taylor knew what I was about to ask.

"So you decided to pretend to blackmail him so he would be protected" Taylor said.

"Well yeah, but you won't blow our cover will you" I asked her.

"Of course not. I love Chad just as much as you do, and if he's happy, then so am I. One question though, is he any good" Taylor asked me.

"Of course, he is related to me after all" I said smugly.

"Yeah, you two are definitely related" Taylor said laughing.

Soon everyone arrived and Ms.Darbus got the auditions started after giving a long speech about the chapel of the arts, or something like that, I zoned out after a little while.

Of the six of us, Gabi was first. She and Pay were both auditioning for Frenchy, with hopes of getting called back for Sandy, while Ry and Troy were both auditioning for Kenickie with hopes of getting Danny. Chad and I, on the other hand, were just aiming for one part, Sonny and Rizzo respectively. Ms. Darbus decided to change the audition process for the lead roles because of the stunts my siblings pulled before last year's winter musicale. Now instead of having pairs audition for the lead, everyone has to audition for a smaller part, then she picks who she wants to audition for the lead based on the first audition. She also announces who got which role once everyone has auditioned.

After Gabi sang "Hopelessly Devoted", Troy sang "Sandy", Pay sang "Hopelessly Devoted", then Ry sang "Sandy", and I sang "There Are Worse Things I Could Do." Once I finished, I took a seat next to Pay as Chad was called to the stage. He also sang "Sandy" since it was the only song the guys could audition with.

"Wow, he's really good" Pay whispered to me as Chad finished.

"I told you so" I whispered back, smiling.

"Whatever" she whispered back, rolling her eyes.

"Alright students, auditioning for the roles of Danny and Sandy are Mr. and Miss Evans, Mr. Bolton, Miss Montez, and Mr. and Miss Danforth." Ms. Darbus announced after everyone had auditioned.

"But Ms. D, I don't want the lead" Chad said.

"I don't want to audition for the lead either Ms. Darbus" I told her.

"Mr. Danforth, you will refer to me as Ms. Darbus, and as for you and Miss Danforth, you will both audition for the leads. You two have very good voices, and I would like to hear you do the duet. Now will the six of you please go to the stage." Ms. Darbus asked.

"But" I started, only to be cut off by Sharpay as she shook her head and pushed me toward the stage.

"Ok, now two of you will sing the leads to "Summer Nights" while the other four sing background. So that I can get a feel for how you will sound, you will each sing with each other. First up, Mr. Bolton and Miss Danforth" Ms. Darbus said.

After we finished our auditions, Ms. Darbus allowed us to take a short break.

"Oh my gosh, I never want to hear that song again" Chad said as we sat down.

"Yeah, nine times was a bit excessive" I agreed as I leaned on him.

"You two stop complaining. If we want to be the best we have to practice. And besides, we sounded great, so it was totally worth it" Sharpay said as she leaned on Ryan.

"Shar's right. We sounded good together without practicing, imagine how we'll sound once we've practiced. No matter who gets the leads, we'll sound great anyway" Troy said as Gabi leaned on him.

"Most definitely" Ryan agreed as Ms. Darbus cleared her throat to get our attention.

"As you all know, the theater is where dreams come true" Ms. Darbus said as she began another one of her long speeches.

I made myself comfortable on Chad as I zoned out. He nudged me once Ms. Darbus got to the roles we tried out for.

"In the role of Sonny, we have Mr. Danforth, and Miss Danforth will play Rizzo" Ms. Darbus said.

"Congrats big bro" I said, not bothering to move from my comfortable position.

"Same to you little sis" Chad said to me.

"Mr. Evans will play Kenickie, and Miss Montez will play Frenchy. In our lead roles of Danny and Sandy, we have Mr. Bolton and Miss Evans, with Mr. Evans and Miss Danforth as the understudies. Congratulations to you all, and thank you for coming. You can collect your passes to class from Kelsi" Ms. Darbus said as she dismissed those of us who auditioned. Auditions ran late, so everyone who wasn't auditioning had to leave after lunch was over.

"Ms. Darbus could I speak to you for a minute" I asked her as everyone else left.

"Of course Miss Danforth, what do you need" she asked me.

"Why did you pick me for understudy? I'm more than happy just being Rizzo, and I know Gabi wants it more than me" I said

"That may be true Miss Danforth, but you have potential that you aren't even trying to use. I can see the passion you have for acting, it was evident in your first song. Your passion, as well as your potential, rivals that of Miss Evans, yet you aren't willing to act on it. You should embrace the gift you've been given and use it" Ms. Darbus told me. "Do you understand?"

"Yes Ms. Darbus" I replied.

"And Miss Danforth, I wouldn't worry about having to play Sandy. Miss Evans is very reliable, but you still need to practice" Ms. Darbus added.

"Ok" I said as I left the auditorium and headed to class, hoping I hadn't missed too much.

**Please leave a review. Thank you. **


	11. Cheer Up Troy

**I only own Kayla, and HSM2 never happened**

Chapter 11: Cheer Up Troy

_Two weeks later…_

"Oh my god, Sandra Bullock is so funny, and she totally kicks butt" Pay said.

"She so rocks, and was informative too. We always have to remember to S.I.N.G." I said laughing.

Pay and I are in the middle of our weekly movie night, and tonight is "girl power" night. We just finished Miss Congeniality, and are having our post-movie chat. We decided to start having movie night together every Friday since neither of us have boyfriends to go on dates with. Sometimes Zeke and Ryan join us, but usually it's just the two of us, which is just fine.

"Pay, do you want anything from the kitchen" I asked as I got up to empty our popcorn bowl.

"Just something to drink please" she answered.

"Ok" I said as I made my way to the kitchen.

"Do you want me to get that" she asked as the doorbell rang.

"No, I've got it" I said going to answer the door.

"Hi" I said answering the door.

"Hey Kayla, is Chad here" Troy asked, looking sad.

"No, he and Taylor are still on their date. Did you need anything" I asked concerned.

"No I just need to talk to Chad" Troy said turning around.

"Troy, are you sure? I'm not Chad, but I am your friend, and you look like you could use one" I said.

"She dumped me" Troy mumbled with tears coming down his face.

"What" I asked confused.

"Gabi, she broke up with me. She said that our spark is gone, and, and" Troy started, but broke down in tears.

"Oh Troy, I'm so sorry" I said as I enveloped him into a hug.

"Hey Kay, what's taking you so long" Pay asked as she came to the door.

"Umm, Troy needs a friend" I told her.

"How about two" Pay offered.

"Umm sure, I'm not interrupting anything am I" Troy asked, wiping his tears with his hands.

"No, we just finished a movie, and you need us, so we're here for you" I told him as I let him in.

"Thanks guys" Troy said.

"No problem. Now you two go to the family room, and I'll be there with drinks in a minute" said.

As I headed back to the kitchen, I sent a quick text message to Chad and Tay to alert them about their best friends. Knowing them, they probably won't even check their phones because they're too caught up in each other. I decided to call Gabi and check on her.

"Hello" Gabi said as she answered the phone.

"Hey Gabi, it's Kayla" I said.

"Oh, hey Kayla, what's up" she asked.

"I was just calling to see if you were ok. Troy's here, and he just told me what happened, well he started to" I said.

"Oh, I'm okay, a little sad, but I'll be fine" she told me.

"Do you need me to come over? I mean do you want to talk about it or something" I asked her.

"Wait, you're not mad at me for breaking up with Troy? You're willing to come talk to me after what I did" she asked.

"No Gabi, I can't be mad at you for doing what you felt you needed to do. And we may not be as close as Troy and I, but you're still my friend, and if my friend needs me, I'm there for her" I said.

"Oh ok. Thanks for offering to come over, but you should stay there and make sure Troy's ok, I'll be fine. Besides, Kelsi is on her way over right now" she told me.

"Ok, but if you need me just call ok" I said.

"Of course, bye" Gabi said.

"Bye Gabi" I said hanging up.

"So Troy, do you want to talk or not talk, or do something else" I asked as I came back from the kitchen.

"I'm not ready to talk yet, I need to clear my head" Troy said.

"And how do you propose we do that" Pay asked.

"By playing ball. It helps me think, as well as blow of steam" Troy answered.

"Well if we play basketball, you have to spot us some points cause we're not very good" I said, trying to get Troy to smile.

"That sounds fair. I'm surprised you didn't make that one of your activities at GLA since you were doing practically everything else there" Troy said with a small smile.

"Ha ha, I cheer for basketball, I don't play it" I said as the three of us went outside.

"How many points are we going up to" Pay asked Troy.

"I think twenty-one is good if each basket is only worth one point" Troy answered.

"And how many do we get to start with" I asked.

"Does seven sound good" Troy asked.

"Yup seven works" Pay said, answering for the both of us.

"Only we get to start" I said, nodding at Pay.

"Ok" Troy said as he passed me the ball.

"Prepare to go down Bolton" Pay said as the game started.

"Not even in your dreams Evans, yours either Danforth" Troy said as he caught the ball after I tried to pass it to Pay.

The game ended with Troy winning twenty-one to nineteen.

"Wow, you two are pretty good. Are you sure you didn't secretly join a basketball league or something" Troy asked wiping his face with his shirt.

"Hey Troy, what can we say, we got skills" I said as Pay and I high-fived.

"Yeah Troy, don't hate the playa, hate the game" Pay added.

"Whatever. I think you two have been holding out on us" Troy said.

"Maybe we have, maybe we haven't" I said as we headed back into the house.

"I'm tired. I think it's time to relax" Troy said as he headed to the family room.

"Uh uh, you know my mom's house rules, you need to go shower in Chad's bathroom if you plan on staying in this house. Pay you can use my bathroom, and I'll use my parent's. Then we can go relax" I said.

"But Kay, I don't want to shower, I just wanna relax" Troy whined.

"Well unless you want a beat down from my mom, I suggest you march up those stairs and into the shower" I told him as I pushed him toward the stairs.

"Alright, I'm going" He said as he headed to the bathroom connected to Chad's room.

Once the three of us finished our showers, we all went back to the family room to hang.

"So Troy, do you want to talk it out now, or do something else" I asked him.

"I'm ready to talk now. Basketball cleared my head, and now I can think straight" Troy said.

"Ok, so what did Gabi say" I asked.

"Well she said that the spark that we used to have was gone, and that the only reason we were even still together is because we're comfortable with each other. She said that we were holding each other back from finding our true loves, and that she was releasing me so that I could be happy" Troy said sadly.

"Well Troy, is the spark gone? Can you honestly say that you feel the same way about her now as you did when you first met" I asked him.

"Well, I still love her, but it's not the same as before. I am comfortable with her, but I thought that is just what happens when you've been together for a while" Troy said.

"Troy you are supposed to be comfortable with your girlfriend, but there is a certain amount of nervousness you should get when you're around her" Pay said.

"I guess you're right, but I still want to be with her" Troy said.

"Troy can you honestly say that she is the one? The one you see yourself with in twenty years, the one you see having your kids, and getting old with" I asked him.

"I used to, but now I'm not so sure" Troy said.

"Troy, you have to be fair to both you and Gabi. Not only are you holding yourself back from finding the love of your life, but you're stopping Gabi from finding hers. If you love her, you have to let her go, and who knows, maybe you two will find your way back to one another, but maybe you won't, but you have to let her go and be who she is. It'll hurt at first, but maybe one day you'll be able to help her through some relationship crisis, but not if you try to hold her back just because your comfortable with her" Pay said.

"Troy she's right. What if it were Chad or J who said they weren't sure if Tay or Kelsi were the one for them, but they didn't want to break up because they were comfortable" I asked him.

"I guess I would tell them they had to let go because they wouldn't be doing anyone any good by holding on. How did you two get so smart" Troy asked as he started to realize that Gabi was right.

"Hey, we're girls" I said.

"Yeah, we were born that way" Pay added.

"Well, I'm glad I have you two here to help me open my eyes" Troy said.

"You know I'm always here for you" I said.

"Me too, even though I don't always act like it" Pay added.

"Yeah, I know you guys have my back" Troy said.

"You know, you look like you still need some cheering up. You wanna know what Chad and I do when he's feeling sad" I asked.

"What, think of new slogans for his T-shirts" Pay joked.

"No, we watch his favorite movie" I said.

"Which is" Troy asked.

"Charlie's Angels" I stated.

"Chad's favorite movie is Charlie's Angels" Pay asked.

"Yeah, seeing the angels kick butt always cheers him up. Plus it fits with our theme Pay" I said.

"Your theme" Troy asked.

"Yeah, since we don't have dates on Fridays, we decided to start having themed movie nights, and today's theme is "girl power"" I told him.

"You're welcome to join us if you want, Zeke and Ry join us sometimes" Pay offered.

"Thanks for the offer, I just may take you up on it. And if Charlie's Angels works for Chad, I'll give it a try" Troy said.

"Ok, Pay, can you set up the movie while I go get us something to eat and drink" I asked.

"Sure Kay, I'm on it" Pay replied.

"Do you need me to do anything" Troy asked.

"Nope, you just sit and relax" I told him as I went to the kitchen.

"You two are amazing" Troy said as I brought snacks from the kitchen and Pay started the movie.

"Yes we are, and don't you forget it" I said taking a seat on one side of Troy as Pay took the other.

"No, seriously, when I came over, I was a mess, but now I kinda feel better" Troy said.

"Glad we could help, and maybe Chad can help more when he gets home" I said.

"How, by making me watch Charlie's Angels Full Throttle" Troy asked.

"Hey don't make fun, both are good movies" I said.

"If you say so" Troy said.

"I do" I said sticking my tongue out at him.

"Will you two please be quiet, the movie's started" Pay said.

"Yes mother" Troy and I said before all three of us burst into laughter.

I guess we fell asleep sometime during the movie because the next thing I knew, Chad was trying to wake me up.

"Kay, wake up" Chad said.

"Chad, I'm sleeping" I told him, not moving.

"Kay, what's Troy doing here" Chad asked me.

"Check your phone" I said, unwrapping my arms from around Troy and sitting up.

"Well is he ok now" Chad asked after he read the text message I sent him.

"He's better than he was when he first got here, but I'm sure he'd like to talk to his best friend" I said.

"Ok, do you wanna wake up Sharpay, or do you want me to just carry her up to your room" Chad asked me.

"I'll wake her up, you just worry about Troy" I told him.

"Ok, that sounds like a plan" Chad said as he went to wake Troy.

"Pay, Pay come on wake up" I said trying to wake up Sharpay.

"Kay, leave me alone" Pay said as she swatted at my hands.

"Shar, I'm about to get up, and I don't want you to fall" Troy told her.

"Fine, I'm up" Pay said.

"Kay, Troy and I are gonna go shoot some hoops for a while" Chad informed me.

"Ok, I'll leave the door unlocked when Pay and I go upstairs" I told him.

"Alright" Chad said.

"Hey Chad, shouldn't you just make him watch Charlie's Angels incessantly" Pay joked as Chad and Troy headed to the door.

"Kayla, what did you tell her" Chad asked me.

"Well I just thought that if Troy knew that Charlie's Angels helped cheer you up, it might help him" I said.

"Well did it" Chad asked Troy.

"Actually, it did, up until we fell asleep, anyway" Troy answered.

"Well since it helped, I guess it's ok for you two to know, but don't go spreading it around. I have an image to protect" Chad said.

"Whatever Chad, we promise not to go around damaging your image" Pay said.

"Yeah, now you two go bump chests, and scratch and grunt, or whatever manly things you do, while we have some girl talk" I said ushering them out the door.

"Hey we do not do that" Troy protested.

"Whatever" Pay said as she closed the door on him.

"So Pay, do you think he'll be alright" I asked as we started cleaning up the family room.

"Yeah, I think so. I think what we said got to him, and I'm sure Chad will help him in whatever way he can" Pay said.

"Speaking of what we said, was any of what you said about you and Troy" I asked.

"What do you mean" she asked me.

"Well you said that maybe one day Troy and Gabi will be able to help each other through a relationship crisis. You do know that's what you were doing with Troy right? Helping him through a relationship crisis" I said.

"Oh well I guess I was, but I wasn't thinking about us. I was just trying to help a friend, well two actually. We should call and check on Gabi" Pay suggested.

"I already called her. After Troy kind of told us what happened I called to see if she needed a friend, but she said Kelsi was on her way over, and I'm sure that Tay is with her now, but you could still call her" I said.

"Yeah, I think I will" Pay said as she went to get her phone.

"Hey Troy, have you called Uncle Jack or Aunt Lucy" I asked stepping out into the backyard.

"No, I completely forgot. My mom is probably worried sick. I have to call home" Troy said, heading towards the house.

"Troy I'll call them and let them know that you're here" I offered.

"Thanks Kay, but could you not tell them why? I'm not in the mood to talk about it to them just yet" Troy told me.

"You got it" I said, going back in the house and dialing Troy's house.

"Hello" Uncle Jack said as he answered the phone.

"Hi Uncle Jack, it's Kayla" I said.

"Hi sweetie, have you seen Troy, his mother and I are worried sick" Uncle Jack said.

"Yeah, that's why I'm calling. He's here working through something with Chad. He came over a few hours ago to see Chad, but he wasn't here yet, so Sharpay and I made him watch a movie, and we ended up falling asleep. He's fine though, and he really did mean to call" I said.

"Ok, well tell him to stay there tonight and to call us first thing in the morning" Uncle Jack told me.

"Ok Uncle Jack, good night" I said.

"Night sweetie" Uncle Jack said hanging up.

"Troy, Uncle Jack said to stay here tonight and to call home first thing in the morning" I yelled out the backdoor.

"Ok" Troy said.

"Kay, what time are mom and dad coming home" Chad asked.

"I think mom said around two" I told him.

"Ok, just remember not to lock us out when you and Sharpay go upstairs" Chad reminded me.

"I promise not to lock you guys out, just don't stay out here too long, you might get sick" I said.

"Yes mother" Troy said as he made a shot.

"Whatever" I said closing the door.

"Pay, how's Gabi" I asked after Pay hung up.

"She says she's fine, but I could tell she's a little sad" Pay told me.

"Are Tay and Kelsi with her" I asked.

"Yeah, they're taking care of her, and she wants to host our sleepover tomorrow" Pay informed me.

"She's still up for it" I asked.

"Yeah, she said she'd rather be surrounded by her girls, being happy, than sitting around feeling sorry for herself" Pay said.

"That's good. We've helped Troy today, and tomorrow we can help Gabi" I said as Pay and I headed upstairs.

"Won't that be weird though? We help Troy come to terms with the break up one day, then help Gabi get over him the next" Pay said.

"I don't think so. We won't be helping Gabi get over Troy, we'll just be supporting her like good friends should. Besides, when I called her earlier, I told her that Troy was here, and she pretty much told me to make sure he was ok, so it's not like she would be mad at us or anything, especially since we helped get her point across" I said.

"I guess you're right. Ok, enough with the break up talk. What else do you wanna talk about" Pay asked me.

"Well, there's always…" I started, but was interrupted when something hit my window.

Pay decided to go see what hit the window.

"What do you boys want" Pay asked opening the window after seeing Chad and Troy standing under it.

"Troy says you two almost beat him at basketball earlier, which can't be true since neither of you can play" Chad said.

"Are you willing to bet on that" I asked joining Pay at the window.

"What are you offering" Chad asked.

"If we win, you two have to take us shopping tomorrow" Pay said.

"And carry our bags, and not complain at all the entire time" I added.

"Please, like that's ever gonna happen" Chad said. "What do we get when we win?"

"What do you want if you win" Pay asked.

"When we win, you two have to watch sports with us all day tomorrow and not complain" Chad said.

"As long as it's not golf, I hate that stupid sport" Pay said.

"Uh uh, we pick the sports, now do we have a deal" Troy asked.

"Yes we have a deal" I said.

"You two do realize you don't get bonus points this time right" Troy asked.

"We don't need them. We could kick your butts even if we started in the negatives" Pay said.

"You two sure are doing a lot of talking up there. Come down and let's play" Chad said.

"We'll be right there" I said, closing the window as Pay and I headed downstairs, then outside.

"So how many are we going up to" Pay asked once we were outside.

"Fifteen sound good" Troy asked.

"Yeah, fifteen is fine" I said.

"You two can start, it's the only time you'll get a chance to score" Chad said.

"Doubt if you must big bro, but you'll be sorry come tomorrow" I said.

"Whatever, let's just get this started" Chad said.

After a very close game, that ended fifteen to fourteen, Pay and I erupted in cheers.

"We're going shopping, we're going shopping" Pay and I chanted as we danced around in a circle.

"I tried to tell you they were good" Troy said to Chad as the four of us went back in the house.

"You didn't tell me they were that good" Chad responded. "Are you two sure you haven't been playing on the side?"

"Chad, it's called natural talent. Face it, you lost fair and square, and now you two have to take us shopping" I said.

"Yeah, and you two should go get your rest, because I will definitely be in the mood to shop tomorrow" Pay added.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Good night girls" Chad said as he and Troy went to his room, and Pay and I went to mine.

"Night boys" Pay and I responded.

Because of my mom's house rules, and the fact that we don't like to smell, Pay and I took a quick shower, separately of course, then proceeded to have the conversation we almost started when we were interrupted earlier, and ended up staying up talking til three in the morning.

**Please leave a review. Thank you**


	12. Shopping Experience

I don't own anything you recognize, including Victoria's Secret, the Food Network, and Life, and HSM2 never happened.

Chapter 12: Shopping Experience

"Guys, it's time for you to get up" I said, trying to wake Chad while Sharpay tried to wake Troy.

"If you two plan on showering and eating this morning, I suggest you get up" Sharpay said, snatching the cover from Troy, and making him fall out of bed.

"What time is it" Chad asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Ten o'clock" I said.

"Ten?! Why are you up so early? I know for a fact that you two didn't go to sleep until after four" Chad said.

"How do you know that? Were you listening to us" I asked.

"No, we got hungry around three, so we went downstairs to get something to eat, and when we came back up, your light was still on" Troy said.

"It took you an hour to eat" Sharpay asked.

"No, we decided to watch ESPN. Now can you please tell us why you're waking us up at ten o'clock on a Saturday" Chad said.

"We have to get started early so we can get to our sleepover at seven" I told him.

"What time do you want to leave" Troy asked.

"Around eleven, so you guys have some time" Sharpay answered.

"Ok, we promise to be ready at eleven" Troy said as Chad started pushing us out the door.

"Ok, and Troy don't forget to call your dad" I reminded him.

"Yeah, have fun explaining to him why you and Chad have to take us shopping" Sharpay said laughing.

"Haha" Troy said as Chad closed the door on us.

"I'd like to hear Uncle Jack's reaction when he hears that the two of us beat Troy and Chad at basketball" I said.

"They'll probably have to do extra practices or something until he's positive they won't get beaten by any girls ever again" Sharpay joked.

"I have to say, you my dear, were excellent" I said.

"As were you. They really need some new moves. I mean seriously, how many times can they expect to fake left and break right before someone notices" she responded.

"When do we tell them that we figured that out when we were playing Troy" I asked.

"When they drop us off at Gabi's. You know your brother, he won't rest until he finds out how we won" she said.

"Right, so I'm guessing we'll get asked a few times" I said.

"Nope, the first time he asks, we tell him that we'll let him in on the secret when they drop us off. That way, he won't bug us all day" she told me.

"Good thinking" I said.

"Kay, where are you" Troy yelled, standing in the hallway.

"Troy, I'm in my room, so stop yelling" I said.

"Sorry, I didn't know if you guys went downstairs. Here, my dad wants to talk to you" Troy said, handing me his phone and laying across my bed.

"Good morning Uncle Jack" I said.

"Good morning Kayla. Troy has informed me that he and Chad lost a basketball game to you and Sharpay. Now, are you honestly telling me that two girls who've played basketball probably no more than five times in their entire lives beat two of my best players" Uncle Jack asked.

"Yes Uncle Jack, Pay and I beat them, but if it makes you feel any better, they only lost by one point, and Troy beat us in our first game" I told him.

"Hmm, you would think it would, but it doesn't. Let them know that they'll have to practice extra hard from now on ok" Uncle Jack said.

"Will do" I said.

"Oh, and Kayla , one more question, how did you two beat them" Uncle Jack asked.

"Now Uncle Jack, I can't go revealing team secrets" I said.

"Come on, not even to me" Uncle Jack asked.

"Fine, I'll let Troy tell you when Pay and I release him and Chad from duty" I told him.

"I guess I'll settle for that. Make sure you and Sharpay make them suffer" Uncle Jack told me.

"Of course we will. Bye Uncle Jack" I said.

"Bye Kayla" Uncle Jack said.

"Ok, so Troy, you and Chad will be having to practice extra hard now, and Pay, we are supposed to make them suffer today" I told them.

"Oh, making them suffer will be easy" Sharpay said.

"Why do we have to practice harder? We already practice harder than everyone but Zeke and Jason" Troy complained.

"You should have thought of that before you told him that you got beaten by the drama queen and your little sister" Sharpay told him.

"Speaking of that, how did you two beat us" Chad asked, standing in my doorway.

"We'll tell you how we beat you when you drop us off at Gabi's for our sleepover" Sharpay told him.

"But I wanna know now" Chad whined.

"I strongly advise you against asking us again. Or else" I said.

"Or else what" Chad asked.

"Or else I'll do something you'll regret. So don't ask again" I told him.

"Fine. Are you guys ready to go then" Chad asked.

"Yes, but we have some ground rules first, well actually just one, no complaining" I said.

"Yeah, either one of you complain, and we try again next week" Sharpay said.

"And we still finish out today" I added.

"Right, and we will keep trying until the both of you can make it through an entire day of shopping. Are we clear" Sharpay asked.

"Yes we got it. Now let's get this over with" Chad said.

"Ok, but no complaining, especially from you Chad. We wouldn't want poor Troy here to suffer anymore because of you" I said.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want poor Troy to suffer" Troy said.

"Fine, I promise not to complain. Now can we go" Chad asked.

"Yes Chad, we can go" Sharpay said.

At the mall…

"So where are we starting" Troy asked.

"We're going in Victoria's Secret, and you and Chad will wait outside" Sharpay told him.

"Why can't we come in" Chad asked.

"Well, you're more than welcome to come in and help me pick out underwear if you want to big bro" I told him.

"Umm, yeah, I'll pass" Chad said.

"I thought you would" I said as Sharpay and I went into Victoria's Secret, leaving the boys outside.

"Kayla, you're gonna drive that boy up a wall one of these days if you don't stop that" Sharpay said.

"I'm just making up for lost time. Besides it's fun. Did you see the look on his face when I told him he could help me pick out underwear? Can you say priceless" I asked.

"Yeah, it was pretty funny, but were you really gonna have him help you" Sharpay asked.

"No, if he had insisted on coming in, I would have just looked at the lotions and perfumes" I told her.

"Ahh, a back-up plan. Good girl" Sharpay said.

"Well, you know, always need to have a back-up" I said.

"So, who do you want to carry your bags" Sharpay asked me as we were checking out.

"Do you plan on buying a lot? Nevermind, don't answer that. Since this is kinda Chad's fault, I'll take Troy" I said.

"Hmm, that means I get Chad. Sounds like fun" Sharpay said with an evil grin on her face.

"Just don't injure him. My mom will have a fit if her baby gets hurt" I told her.

"But aren't you the baby" Sharpay asked.

"Yes, I am the baby, but you know that he's her baby" I said.

'Oh yeah, I forgot. Well, I promise not to hurt him, well not too much anyway" Sharpay said as we walked out of the store.

"Ok boys, come get your bags" I said.

"Actually, Chad you will be carrying my bags and Troy will be carrying Kay's" Sharpay said as Chad went to grab my bag.

"I have to carry Shar's bags why" Chad asked.

"Because if you had listened to Troy and not challenged us, you guys wouldn't be here right now. I know you want to complain, and say it's not fair, but I wouldn't do that if I were you" I told him.

"Fine. Sharpay may I take your bags" Chad said.

"Why yes Chad you may" Sharpay said giving Chad her bag and dragging him to another store.

"Kay, thanks for picking me and not making me carry Shar's bags" Troy said taking my bag.

"You're welcome, but don't worry, if you guys fail today, you'll get your turn next week" I told him.

"Oh no, I have to make sure Chad doesn't mess up" Troy said running to the store Chad and Sharpay had gone into.

After three and a half hours, Sharpay and I had conquered both floors of the south end of the mall. We decided that Chad and Troy deserved a break, so we headed to the food court to eat.

"So how are you guys enjoying your day so far" I asked Chad and Troy after we had gotten our food and sat down.

"Actually, it's not all that bad. My load isn't all that heavy" Troy said, indicating my seven bags, which he had smartly turned into three.

"Well mine is extremely heavy, not that I'm complaining or anything, it's helping me with my upper body strength" Chad said, almost earning him and Troy another trip to the mall.

"Aww Chad, you were so close. Are you sure you don't have anything to say about the twelve bags you're carrying" Sharpay asked.

"Yeah actually I do. Is it ok if I combine your bags like Troy did Kayla's or do you think it'll wrinkle your clothes" Chad asked.

"Umm, yeah Chad, that would be fine" Sharpay answered.

"So far so good guys. I wasn't sure at first, but you just might make it after all" I said.

"Make what" Jason asked, walking up with Zeke.

"Hey guys" Zeke said.

"Hey" we responded.

"What are you guys talking about" Jason asked.

"Troy and Chad lost a bet to Kay and I, and now they're paying" Sharpay told them.

"Yeah, they have to spend an entire day with us shopping, and they can't complain at all. So far they haven't complained, but we still have a few hours left before our sleepover, so they have plenty of time to mess up" I added.

"Wow, Chad and Troy shopping all day and not complaining. That sounds interesting" Zeke said.

"You guys are welcome to join us if you want" Sharpay offered.

"Do we have to carry your bags" Jason asked.

"Of course not. That's what we have Chad and Troy for" I told him.

"Well then, we're in. I wanna see them in action" Zeke said.

"How did you guys end up being their pack mules anyway" Jason asked.

"Yeah, what bet did you lose" Zeke added.

"Do we have to tell them" Chad asked Sharpay and I.

"Not if you don't want to" Sharpay said.

"But you might as well because Uncle Jack will probably tell them anyway when you're running extra laps or doing more suicides, or whatever it is that he's gonna have you do" I said.

"Whoa, what did you two do that got you sentenced to a day at the mall and extra practice" Zeke asked.

"We lost a basketball game" Troy said.

"To who" Zeke asked.

"Them" Chad said.

"You lost to Kayla and Sharpay? They don't even play basketball" Jason said.

"They may not play, but it's not because they can't. They're really good" Chad said.

"Glad you can admit that" Sharpay said.

"Just don't let it go to your head" Chad told her.

"Too late. I can already feel my head swelling" Sharpay joked.

"Hahaha. Are you guys ready to get back to your shopping yet" Chad asked.

"Chad, are you feeling ok" I asked checking his forehead for a fever.

"Yes Kayla, I'm fine. I just figured that the sooner you guys hit all the stores you wanted, the sooner we could go home" Chad said.

"Oh ok, that sounds like you" I said.

"Ok, so let's get going then" Chad said.

We had been shopping for about two hours when we passed Zeke's favorite store, Cook's Place. They were filming a show for the Food Network, and Zeke decided to watch it.

"Kay, do you wanna come with me? You just may learn a thing or two" Zeke said.

"I really doubt I could learn how to cook in an hour, but I'll come with you anyway" I told him.

"Yes, I'm off the hook" Troy said, starting to dance.

"Not so fast Troy. Pay, how many stores do you still want to hit" I asked.

"Umm, I don't know, five or six maybe. Why" Sharpay asked.

"Because Troy will be carrying one out of every three bags you get" I said.

"Ooh, Kay, I like the way you think" Sharpay said. "Come on boys, let's go.

"And J, do me a favor. Try to get one of them to complain. This is fun" I said.

"Sure thing Kayla" Jason responded.

"Ok Zeke, let's go watch the show" I said.

By the time the show was over, it was almost six-thirty, and we had to meet up with everyone else so Pay and I could get to Gabi's on time.

"Hey guys, are you ready to go" I asked once Zeke and I met back up with everyone else.

"Yeah, it's almost time for us to get to Gabi's" Sharpay answered.

"So Pay, do we get another shopping trip out of these guys or what" I asked as we headed toward the mall entrance.

"Unfortunately, I didn't hear one complaint. Jason and I were really getting on them, but they didn't say a word" Sharpay said.

"Aww, and I was really looking forward to doing this again next week. Guys, I guess you're officially off the hook. Congrats on surviving the day" I said.

"Thanks, but just in case, we'll save our complaining til after we drop you two off" Chad said.

"Yeah, we're not taking any chances" Troy added.

"Whatever" I said as we exited the mall.

"Hey guys, my car is over there, so we'll catch you later" Zeke said as he and Jason headed in the opposite direction of Chad's car.

"See ya" Chad, Troy, Pay, and I all said.

"Oh and Kayla, don't forget we have a cooking lesson tomorrow afternoon" Zeke reminded me.

"I won't forget. Bye" I told him, getting a wave from him, and a smirk from Sharpay.

"What" I asked her.

"Nothing" she replied.

"If you two are done, let's go" Chad said, heading to his car.

Once we got to Gabi's house, Chad cut off the car, and he and Troy turned around and looked at Pay and I expectantly.

"What" Pay and I asked.

"Isn't there something you wanted to tell us" Troy said.

"Umm, oh yeah, Chad when you take our bags home, put mine on the bed, and Pay's by the bed, and Pay will pick her things up tomorrow" I said as Pay and I grabbed our overnight bags, ran to Gabi's door, and rang the doorbell.

"Guys, come on, how did you beat us" Chad asked.

"Fine. You guys constantly fake left and then break right. After watching Troy do it a few times during the first game, we caught on and were able to beat you" I said, looking up and seeing Taylor in the doorway.

"In other words, you guys need new moves" Sharpay added as we went inside and closed the door.

"What was that about" Taylor asked as we headed up to Gabi's room after saying hi to her mom.

"They wanted to know how they lost our bet" I told her as we entered Gabi's room.

"What bet, and with whom" Gabi asked.

"Oh, last night Chad and Troy made a bet with Pay and I that we couldn't beat them in a game of basketball. They lost and wanted to know how, but we chose not to tell them until they dropped us off" I said.

"What did you guys win" Kelsi asked.

"A day at the mall with them carrying our bags, and not complaining" Sharpay said.

"How did you manage to keep them from complaining" Taylor asked.

"We told them that if they complained, they would have to finish out the day with us, and then try again next week. We tried to get them to complain so we could do it again, but they wouldn't say anything negative" I said.

"So you two were with them shopping all day, and making them carry your bags, and you couldn't get them to complain once" Gabi asked.

"Nope, and the sad thing is we had help" I said.

"Help from who" Kelsi asked.

"Zeke and Jason. We saw them while we were taking a break, and they joined us after we told them they didn't have to do bag duty" I said.

"Yeah, we had help until Zeke and Kayla deserted us, and left Jason and I to work Troy and Chad all by ourselves" Sharpay said.

"Ooh, you and Zeke alone" Taylor squealed.

"What's with the squealing Tay? So what if Zeke and Kay were alone together? Why is that a big deal" Gabi asked.

"It's a big deal because it means they're progressing" Taylor said.

"Progressing" Kelsi asked.

"Umm, I kinda have a small crush on Zeke, and of course Tay and Pay have to blow everything out of proportion" I said.

"Ooh, you and Zeke, that would be so cute" Gabi squealed.

"Now who's squealing" Taylor said.

"It's really not that big a deal. We just watched a cooking demonstration" I said.

"Yeah, and you two made plans to get together tomorrow" Sharpay said.

"For a cooking lesson" I pointed out.

"And you were holding hands when you guys rejoined us" Sharpay continued as if I hadn't said anything.

"We were not holding hands. Were we" I asked, getting a nod from Sharpay.

"Oh my god, you guys are so gonna be the next "It" couple" Taylor said.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves now. This thing is one-sided. Zeke is not interested, so it doesn't really matter" I said.

"Don't worry Kay, if it's meant to be, it'll be" Gabi said.

"Thanks Gabi. Ok, enough about me, how are you" I asked.

"I'm good. I'll miss Troy as my boyfriend, but we're friends, so we'll still be able to hang out and everything. It'll be different, but it'll be ok" Gabi said.

"Well, if there's anything I can do for you, just let me know, and it's done" I told her.

"Just keep doing what you're doing. Don't go out of your way to not mention Troy just because you think it'll make me uncomfortable" Gabi said.

"So we can't refer to Troy as "he who shall remain nameless", huh" Sharpay asked.

"Nope, he is to remain Troy, not that one guy, or the ex, or any of that, understood" Gabi asked us.

"Yes, we got it" Taylor said, with the rest of us nodding in agreement.

"Ok, now that that's settled, Kay, there is one more thing you could do for me" Gabi said.

"What's that" I asked.

"Explain this whole thing with Zeke" Gabi said.

"Ooh yeah, I wanna know too" Kelsi said.

"I thought we closed the book on that" I said.

"No, you closed the book. The rest of us were still reading" Gabi said.

"Well, I guess it is only fair that you and Kelsi know the whole story, but you can't act like Tay and Pay, and go crazy over small insignificant interactions Zeke and I may have" I said.

"I promise not to be over-dramatic" Kelsi said.

"I can't make that promise" Gabi said.

"I guess I'll tell you anyway. It started back in eighth grade" I said as I began filling Gabi and Kelsi in on my feelings for Zeke from back then up til now. Surprisingly, I was able to get through it with only a few interruptions.

After I told my story, we decided to play Life, which led to us having an interesting conversation about real life, and all the decisions we make, and how they affect our lives. We ended up talking til three in the morning, only being interrupted when Chad and Jason called to say goodnight to Taylor and Kelsi.

Please review. Thanks


	13. Homecoming Dates

I only own Kayla, and HSM2 never happened

Chapter 13: Homecoming Dates

_Two weeks later…_

"Ugh, I still can't believe that Homecoming is on Halloween, and we can't wear costumes" Chad complained.

"Chad get over it. No matter how much you complain, we still won't be able to wear costumes" Troy said.

It's true, this year, Homecoming falls on Halloween, and we were all looking forward to wearing costumes, but a few weeks ago, Principal Matsui announced that costumes and masks of any kind would not be allowed. Needless to say, we're all pretty bummed, Chad more so than the rest of us.

"I know, it's just Tay and I were gonna wear a "couples" costume, and now we can't" Chad said.

"Chad, it's not like we can't have our own costume party if we want to, or maybe one of our other dances will have a costume theme, and we can wear the costumes then" Taylor said.

"Yeah Chad, you should just be grateful you have someone to wear a "couples" costume with" I said.

"Is this about the boyfriend thing" Chad asked me.

"No Chad, I am perfectly fine with not having a boyfriend. This is about the no-date thing" I replied.

"What no-date thing" Troy asked.

"Oh you don't know? Chad and Sharpay have made it impossible for me to get a date to Homecoming. They've been taking turns preventing guys from asking me out. Anytime a guy would talk to me, Sharpay dragged me away from him, or Chad would stand across the hall giving him the evil eye, or threatening him, or something until he got nervous and walked away, and now it's three days before the dance, and I don't have a date" I said.

"Chad, Sharpay, why would you do that" Taylor questioned.

"We have our reasons, very good ones" Chad said.

"Yeah, we were just making sure she accepted an invitation from the right guy" Sharpay added.

"How do you know the right guy hasn't already tried to ask me out, but was scared off by you two" I asked.

"Because the right guy for you isn't afraid of me, only of Sharpay" Chad said.

"And he would put up a fight for you, and not let me drag you away from him" Sharpay added.

"Why do you two think you know what's best for me? I think I'm old enough to pick the right guy for me, and I would appreciate it if you two would let me" I said, leaving the room.

"Guys, she's right, you gotta let her grow up" I heard Taylor say as she followed me out of the room,

"Kayla wait" Taylor said as I made my way to the stairs.

"Tay, it's not fair. They treat me the same way they did back in sixth grade. I mean I'm sixteen for heaven's sake" I said, sitting down on the stairs.

"Kayla, you know they don't mean to be like that, they just can't help themselves. They want to protect you, and haven't learned how to do that without interfering with your life" Taylor said, joining me on the stairs.

"Tay, I know they mean well, but why can't they just back off a little. You and Troy have backed off since I've been back, so why can't they" I asked.

"Kay, you know they've always been the most protective of you. You just have to give them time to adjust to the fact that you're not the same little girl who left, but a young woman who can take care of herself" Taylor said.

"How long is that gonna take? I've been back for almost two months, and they're still treating me like a child. Tay, they're worse than my parents" I said.

"Well, if you think it would help, I could threaten Chad, and talk to Pay, and see if I can get them to give you some space" Taylor offered.

"Thanks Tay" I said, standing up and giving her a hug.

"Hey, what are big sisters for" Taylor replied as we went back to the family room.

"Hey Zeke, when did you get here" I asked as Taylor and I took a seat on one of the couches.

"Just a couple of minutes ago, but I'm wondering what I've walked into" Zeke responded.

"Well, Chad and I were just about to apologize to Kayla for being over-bearing, over-protective date police" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, and we promise to back off and let you date whomever you want" Chad added.

"I'd believe that if both of you hadn't already promised that same thing almost two months ago" I said.

"Well this time we mean it, and no one is making us do it" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, and after having you snap on us, and Troy talk some sense into us, we've decided that you are right, and we have to stop treating you like a child" Chad added.

"You two really mean it this time? You're not just saying this so I'll stop being mad at you" I asked.

"Yes Kay, we really mean it, and no, we're not just saying it. We really are gonna back off" Sharpay said.

"Now this doesn't mean that we won't hurt anyone who hurts you, or attempts to hurt you, just that we'll step aside and let you make your own decisions" Chad said.

"I guess asking for more would be pushing it huh" I asked as I hugged Chad.

"Most definitely lil sis. I love you and I'm sorry" Chad said as he kissed my forehead.

"I'm sorry too Kayla. I'll try to do better, but it might take me a couple of times to truly back off" Sharpay said.

"Well I'm willing to work with you as long as you're trying. And you're both forgiven, and I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier" I said hugging Sharpay.

"Don't worry about it Kayla" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, we definitely deserved it, it was our wake-up call" Chad said.

"Well, I'm still sorry" I said.

"Now what are we gonna do about you not having a date" Sharpay asked as she and I joined Taylor on the couch.

"Oh no, we are not doing anything. You have done enough" I told her.

"So Kay, has the right guy attempted to ask you to Homecoming" Taylor asked.

"The right guy maybe, but the guy I want to go with hasn't, and I doubt he will" I replied.

"Well then, do you wanna go with me" Troy asked.

"You don't have a date? But you're Troy Bolton, East High's god, dream guy to 95 percent of East High's female population" Sharpay said.

"I think you're exaggerating Shar, and my dream girl is in the 5 percent who doesn't think I'm their dream guy" he replied.

"Well have you asked her? She just might say yes" I said.

"I can't ask her. I've seen her turn down every guy who's asked her" Troy said.

"Maybe she's waiting for you to ask her" Taylor said.

"I doubt it. So Kayla, what do you say? Be my date" Troy asked.

"Well since you can't have your dream girl and I can't have my dream guy, I guess we're a match made in circumstantial heaven" I said.

"Is that a yes" Troy asked.

"Hold on" I said as I whispered to Taylor and Sharpay. "Ok, ask me again"

"Kayla come on" Troy said.

"Just do it Troy" Taylor said.

"Fine. Kayla would like to go to Homecoming with me" Troy asked.

"Oh my god, Troy Bolton just asked me to Homecoming" I screamed as Taylor, Sharpay, and I jumped up and down in a circle.

"Kayla, you're the luckiest girl at East High" Taylor said as she and Sharpay hugged me.

"I know, oh my god, I'm so excited" I said, then "fainted" into their arms.

"Kayla, Kay wake up" Sharpay said.

"Troy, you have to help her, you're the only one who can wake her up" Taylor said.

"Dear maidens, fear not for I am coming" Troy said, playing along.

"Troy, you have to hurry, she doesn't have much time" Sharpay said.

"Dear princess, please wake up" Troy said as he kissed my hand.

"My hero" I said, finally "waking up," as the four of us burst into laughter.

"Are you guys done yet" Chad asked.

"I just thought Troy should get the response he would've gotten if he had asked one of his worshippers" I said.

"Come on Chad, you have to admit, it was kinda funny" Zeke said.

"Ok, serious time now, we have to find Pay a date" I said.

"Shar, you don't have a date" Chad asked.

"No, a few guys asked me, but I turned them down, and I didn't really have time to find a suitable date with rehearsals and everything" Sharpay answered.

"Are you sure that butting into Kay's life had nothing to do with it" Taylor asked.

"Well, it did keep me really busy" Sharpay said, smiling.

"Shar, since you don't have a date and I don't have a date, do you wanna go together? As friends I mean" Zeke asked.

"Zeke, I would be honored to go to Homecoming with you" Sharpay answered.

"Ok, now that we're all paired up, don't you girls need to buy your dresses" Troy asked.

"Nope, we bought them last week. I'm wearing a white dress, Tay's wearing red, and Pay's wearing gold. You guys just need to match us" I said.

"Sharpay, you're not wearing pink" Chad asked.

"No, I wanted to, but someone wouldn't let me" Sharpay said, looking at me.

"Hey, we decided that if neither of us had a date, then we would go together, and there was no way I was wearing a pink dress, or a dress with pink in it" I said.

"Speaking of your dress, why haven't I seen it? It's not short is it" Chad asked.

"Of course it is. That's why I left it at Tay's" I said as Taylor, Sharpay, and I went upstairs to my room.

"Kay, you're not wearing a short dress" Chad yelled up the stairs.

"Whatever you say Chad" I yelled back, closing my door.

"Kay, why do you give him such a hard time? He just wants to make sure no one takes advantage of you" Taylor said.

"I give him a hard time because he deserves it. Besides, no one is gonna try anything, I'm going with… Oh my god, I'm going with Troy. Pay, I'm so sorry, I didn't think… I'll tell him I can't go" I said, heading to my door.

"Kayla, it's fine, really. I don't mind. I mean it's not like he's ready for what I want anyway. He did just break up with Gabi a couple of weeks ago" Sharpay said, stopping me.

"But Pay. I shouldn't be going out with someone you like, even if it is just as friends" I said.

"Kay, it's fine. My crush is taking you, and your crush is taking me, we're even" Sharpay said.

"Oh, I guess you're right" I said.

"You two will just have to switch partners during the dance" Taylor joked.

"Actually, that's not a bad idea" Sharpay said.

"Pay, stop those wheels from turning right now" I told her.

"But Kayla, I have a plan" Sharpay whined.

"I won't participate. I may be interested in Zeke, but he's obviously not interested in me" I said.

"You do have a point. I don't even know if Troy is interested in me either. Ok, I'll put that plan on ice" Sharpay said.

"Thank goodness. Now, how are we getting there? I doubt six couples could fit into one limo, and it might be awkward if Troy and Gabi rode together with Gabi's date. What" I asked after I noticed that Taylor and Sharpay were giving me weird looks.

"There won't be six couples, only five. Gabi's date is Ryan" Sharpay said.

"And the guys are handling the ride. It'll only be the three of us, and those three downstairs. They had planned to ride together in Zeke's mom's SUV since it has third row seating. Thankfully, you two are Troy and Zeke's dates, and I'm not stuck riding with three lunkheads and two bimbos" Taylor said.

"Well, that's good, but where have I been? Ryan and Gabi" I asked.

"Yeah, he asked her this morning" Taylor said.

"Why did he wait til this morning" I asked.

"He wanted to get Troy's blessing first" Sharpay informed me.

"So boys have that code too huh" Taylor said.

"Apparently. He didn't want to hurt his friendship with Troy, but really likes Gabi, and has for a while, so he asked Troy if he would mind if he asked Gabi out. Troy said he wouldn't mind, so Ry asked her and she said yes" Sharpay said.

"So Gabi and Ry? I think I like it" I said.

"I definitely like it. Ry was so happy when he told me that she said yes. He was smiling so hard I swear I thought his face was gonna freeze like that" Sharpay said.

"Gabi is pretty happy too. She smiled the entire time we were in our morning classes" Taylor said.

"Well I'm happy for the both of them" I said.

"We all are, and hopefully it works out for them. Now that all that's settled, we need to work on our hair" Sharpay said, passing us the hair magazines she brought over.

We spent the rest of the evening looking at the magazines and experimenting with our hair until it was time for Taylor and Sharpay to go home.

Please leave a review. Thank you.


	14. Homecoming

**I don't own anyone you recognize, and HSM 2 never happened. Enjoy.**

Chapter 14: Homecoming

Three days later…

"Kayla Marie and Sharpay Elizabeth, if you two don't get down here right now, I'm coming up there and dragging you down here myself" Taylor yelled up the stairs.

"We're coming mother" I yelled back to her.

"Just because you're tied down to Chad and don't care about your looks doesn't mean us single girls have to stop being fabulous, and looking this fabulous takes time" Sharpay said as she and I finally left Taylor's room and stood at the top of the stairs.

"Taylor looks gorgeous Sharpay, and it didn't take her forever to get like that" Chad said.

"If that's what you wanna believe, go ahead, but remember, we are at her house, where she's been all day" Sharpay countered.

"Whatever. My baby would be gorgeous in a potato sack and a ponytail, with no make-up" Chad told her.

"Aww, thank you baby, that's so sweet" Taylor said, kissing Chad.

"You just had to get them started didn't you" I whispered to Sharpay.

"I was just teasing Tay. How was I supposed to know he would jump in and they'd end up kissing? Let's just get down there so we can go" Sharpay whispered back.

"We can't" I told her.

"Why not" she asked.

"Because Troy is standing there staring at you, and he's in a daze" I said, pointing to Troy at the bottom of the stairs.

"Oh, I see what you mean. I take it that you've noticed that Zeke is staring at you, then" Sharpay asked, pointing to Zeke, who was also staring up at us in a daze.

"I thought he was staring at you" I told her.

"Nope, his eyes are glued to you" she told me.

"What are you two doing up there? Get down here" Chad said, finally taking his eyes off of Taylor.

"We can't. The stairs are blocked" I said, pointing to Zeke and Troy.

"Oh. Guys move so they can come down" Chad said.

"Chad, they're in a bit of a daze, so you're gonna have to do better than that" I told him.

"You think big brother mode will work" he asked.

"It should" I replied.

"Alright. HEY, I do not appreciate you standing there staring at my little sister, and I doubt Ryan would appreciate you staring at his, so stop it" Chad said forcefully, immediately snapping Troy and Zeke out of their daze.

"Sorry, we didn't know we were staring" Troy said.

"Well you were" Chad said, coming up the stairs and escorting Pay and I down.

"And you didn't wanna wear that dress" Taylor said when we joined her.

"Speaking of that dress, where's the rest of it" Chad asked, pointing at my short white halter dress with gold trim.

"The same place as Tay's and Pay's" I said, pointing to Taylor's short red spaghetti strapped dress with red sparkles, and Sharpay's short strapless gold dress.

"If you're done harassing Kayla, let's go before my mom…" Taylor started, but was cut off by Aunt Angie.

"Oh good, you're still here. I thought I had missed you. Come on so I can take pictures of you" Aunt Angie said, coming into the house with a camera in her hand.

"Mom, it's time for us to go" Taylor said.

"Tay, come on. It's your last Homecoming, and Kay's first one with you guys. Besides, I am not gonna have Jessica and Alisha on my case because I didn't get pictures" Aunt Angie said.

"T-T. what if we give you one picture now, and at the dance, we'll take a picture with the six of us plus Ryan, Gabi, Jason, and Kelsi" I asked.

"Hmm, I guess your mothers would settle for one house picture if they get the ten of you in one photo, plus your couples photos. Ok, fine, I'll settle for just one picture" Aunt Angie relented.

"Thanks for saving us from having to take a million pictures" Taylor said as we lined up in front of her fireplace.

"No problem. I overheard my mom talking to your mom, so I had time to think up a game plan" I told her.

"Ok guys, big smiles" Aunt Angie said as she took our picture.

"Ok mom, the dance is over at twelve, but we're gonna go somewhere to eat afterwards, so we'll be back at two if that's ok" Taylor said.

"Yeah Tay, that's fine. Will it just be you three, or are Gabi and Kelsi coming over too" Aunt Angie asked.

"Gabi and Kelsi are coming too. Their stuff is already in my room" Taylor told her.

"Ok, well you kids go have fun, and ladies, try not to wake us when you get in" Aunt Angie said.

"Ok mom, goodnight" Taylor said.

"Night T-T" Sharpay and I said as we all went outside, and got into Zeke's mom's SUV, and headed to the dance.

_At the dance…_

"Wow, so this is what an East High dance looks like" I said as we entered the gym, which was decorated with an island theme.

"Amazing isn't it" Troy said.

"Yeah, I can tell it'll be way better than the ones at GLA, and we haven't even been here for five minutes yet" I said.

"Well, it'll only get better. Once we're actually inside dancing and having fun, then you'll see how great East High dances really are" Troy told me.

"Are you two planning on actually coming in, or are you just gonna stand in the doorway" Chad asked us.

"We're coming. Kayla just needed a minute to take everything in" Troy said.

"Well come on so we can party" Chad said.

"I think we should take pictures first, that way we won't have to interrupt our fun to take them" Taylor said.

"We only have to take two pictures. How long could that take" Chad asked.

"A lot longer than you think since we have to take more than two pictures" Sharpay told him.

"How many do we have to take" Troy asked.

"Well, there's the couples pictures, the group photo, us girls want to take an all-girls picture, my mom wants a picture of you, me, Chad, and Tay, and Aunt Jessica wants one of Sharpay, Zeke, Gabi, and Ryan" I told him.

"Hey, maybe we should take an all-guys picture" Zeke said.

"Sure, we could do that. So how many pictures are we gonna end up taking" Troy asked.

"Umm, between the ten of us, ten" I said.

"Wow, maybe we should get started now" Chad said.

"I'll call Gabi and Kelsi and tell them to meet us in the picture line" Taylor said.

"Yeah cause the sooner we finish the pictures, the sooner we can party" Chad said.

"Is that all you can think about" I asked him as we all headed to the picture line.

"Uh, yeah, that is what this is about" Chad said.

"Whatever" I replied as Gabi, Kelsi, Ryan, and Jason met us at the picture line.

"You guys look great" Gabi said.

"So do you guys" I said.

"Umm, Shar, where's the rest of your dress" Ryan asked.

"The same place as everyone else's Ry" Sharpay said, rolling her eyes, and mouthing "brothers" to me.

"Well, I think it's too short" Ryan said.

"It's no shorter than anyone else's" Sharpay said.

"Which isn't saying much" Chad said.

"What's that supposed to mean" Taylor asked him.

"Just that I think Kay's dress is too short too" Chad said.

"You two can just get over this whole overprotective big brother routine because our dresses are no shorter than anyone else's, and we're not changing" I said.

"Yeah, we look fabulous, so drop it" Sharpay added.

"Fine, but I just wanna go on record as saying that your dress is too short" Chad said.

"Me too" Ryan added.

"Fine, if mom or dad have a problem with my dress, you told me it was too short" I said.

"You too Ryan" Sharpay said.

"Now that that's settled, it's our turn" Taylor said.

When the photographer found out how many pictures we were taking, he decided to give us a huge discount. After we had taken all of our pictures, we headed straight to the dance floor to start partying.

"So Kay, are you having fun" Troy asked after we had been dancing for about an hour.

"Yeah, I'm having a blast. I didn't know you were such a great dancer. You've improved a lot since middle school" I told him.

"Yeah, well I had to since I came to East High" Troy said.

"Why, cause all the girls wanted to dance with you or something" I asked.

"Something like that. Anyway, I've noticed that you've gotten better too. You used to step on my toes all the time" Troy said.

"Hey, I wasn't stepping on your toes, you were putting your toes under my feet" I said.

"Whatever. I'm just glad you're having a good time" Troy said.

"I really am, but I'm a bit surprised that no one has tried to steal you away" I told him.

"I'm not. They're probably too scared to even attempt it" Troy said.

"Scared of what? Certainly not me" I said.

"Not you, your sisters. Rumor has it that you have a crush on someone on the basketball team, and since you're here with me, they probably think your crush is on me. They're leaving us alone because they don't want your sisters coming down on them for trying to take me away from you" Troy told me.

"Oh, well I can honestly say that you are the second to last guy at East High that I would ever have a crush on" I told him.

"Ouch. Just go ahead and crush my ego Kay" Troy said.

"Troy, I didn't mean it like that, just that you're almost as close to me as Chad, and I really do consider you my brother, so having a crush on you would be weird" I told him.

"Ok, so it would be weird for you to have a crush on me, but what about the other guys" Troy asked.

"What do you mean" I asked.

"Would it be weird if you had a crush on Jason, Ryan, or Zeke" Troy asked.

"Well, I'm not as close to them as I am to you, so I don't think it would be weird, but that doesn't mean I have a crush on one of them, but I will go on record as saying I don't have a crush on Jason. He is dating one of my best friends after all" I told him.

"So who do you have a crush on" Troy asked.

"I'm not telling you who, but I will say that the rumor is right. I do have a crush on a member of the basketball team, but which of the remaining ten players is it" I said.

"Hmm, I'll have to think about that. As long as it's not Bobby, I'm happy" Troy said.

"Maybe it's Bobby, but maybe it's not. I'm not telling, but let's discuss your crush now. Who is she" I asked.

"No way am I telling you. You would just freak out, and go tell her" Troy said,

"Troy, now you know I wouldn't do that. That's not my style. You have to give me a hint though, what activities is she in? Is she here, what color is she wearing" I asked.

"I can't tell you what activities she's in cause you'd figure it out, but she's here, and she's wearing gold" Troy told me.

"Gold huh? Ok, there are only five girls in gold: Martha, Alexis, Jasmine, Tiffany, and Sharpay. You said the girl you like isn't in your fan club, which only leaves Martha and Sharpay. You also said she turned guys down, and Martha is a total sweetheart and accepted the first guy who asked her, even though she could have done better, so that leaves Sharpay. It's Sharpay isn't it" I said.

"Crap, I forgot only five girls are wearing gold. Yeah, it's Shar, but you can't tell her. She'd just laugh" Troy said.

"Troy, she wouldn't laugh. Why didn't you ask her to the dance? She would've said yes" I told him.

"You think so" Troy said.

"I know so. Troy, you've gotta try to get her back. You'll end up regretting it if you don't" I said.

"Ok, I'll call her tomorrow. I don't wanna leave you alone, or interrupt her and Zeke" Troy said.

"Troy, I'm a big girl, I can be left alone for a little while, and I'm sure Zeke would understand. Now go get her" I said, giving him a kiss on the cheek, and a shove in Sharpay's direction.

"Thanks Kayla" Troy said.

"You're welcome, now go" I told him as he went to Sharpay and Zeke, and I went to find a table to sit at.

I had been sitting down for less than five minutes when Bobby came over and joined me.

"Hey Kayla, I haven't talked to you in a while" Bobby said.

"Yeah, I've been kinda busy with rehearsals and everything" I told him.

"Oh, so why haven't you called me" Bobby asked.

"Umm, I lost your number" I told him.

"Oh, you could've just asked me for it" Bobby said.

"I would have, but I don't think we would be a good match" I said.

"Why not? Rumor has it that you like a basketball player, which I am, not to mention that I'm the finest guy in school, and you're kinda cute, so why wouldn't we be a good match" Bobby asked.

"Because you're also an arrogant jerk who likes to play with girls' hearts. And you really shouldn't listen to rumors, they're usually not true. And besides, the guy I like is intelligent, talented, and extremely cute. You, Bobby, are none of those" I said, getting up from the table, and walking away, directly into Zeke.

"Oh, sorry Zeke, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going" I said.

"No problem. Are you ok" Zeke asked.

"Yeah, I just had a small encounter with Bobby that threw me off a bit" I told him.

"Do you want me to…? Nevermind, I'm sure you handled it fine" Zeke said.

"Thank you. I don't think he'll be trying to talk to me anymore, I told him I wasn't interested in him" I said.

"Well good for you. Hey, I was wondering, since your date stole my date, do you wanna dance" Zeke asked.

"Yeah, sure. Sorry about Troy stealing Pay, I literally pushed him into it" I told him.

"That's ok, Troy and Sharpay belong together. I mean, look at them, it's like there's no one else in the room" Zeke said, pointing to Troy and Sharpay.

"Yeah, they do look happy together. Are you ok with the possibility of Pay actually dating someone? I mean, I know how you feel about her" I said.

"You mean felt. I was interested in her Ice Queen persona, but now that she's back to normal, not so much" Zeke said.

"I think you're the only person at East High who prefers mean Sharpay to regular Sharpay" I said.

"Don't get me wrong, regular Sharpay is great, but mean Sharpay was fun to flirt with" Zeke said.

"So you're telling me that you enjoyed being yelled at and turned down all the time" I asked him.

"No, it was just good practice for girls that I actually had a chance with, plus it was fun getting her all riled up and flustered" Zeke said.

"Hey, you were just using my sister to practice your game" I said, hitting Zeke.

"Ouch Kay, that hurt. And no, I wasn't just using her to practice my game. I really did like her" Zeke said.

"But you don't anymore" I asked.

"No, I like someone else. She's nice, talented, smart, and incredibly beautiful" Zeke said.

"So why didn't you ask her to Homecoming" I asked.

"I don't think she likes me. She hasn't shown any interest in me" Zeke said.

"Zeke, girls don't always express interest in a guy directly to him, sometimes we're afraid of being hurt or rejected, but she just may like you. You should've asked her out" I told him.

"Well, I was gonna ask her, but by the time I finally got the courage to do it, she already had a date" Zeke said.

"Oh, maybe you should go find her and ask her to dance. I doubt she would turn you down if you asked her to dance. Go ahead, and umm, I'll catch you later, ok? Good luck" I said, leaving Zeke on the dance floor and heading to the restroom.

"Hey Kayla, are you having fun" Gabi asked me when I entered the restroom.

"Oh, hey Gabi. Yeah, I've been having fun" I told her.

"Then why do you look like you're about to cry" Gabi asked, noticing the look on my face.

"Because I think I am" I told her.

"Kayla, what's wrong? When I left the gym, you and Zeke were dancing together, and it looked like you were having a good time" Gabi said.

"We were. We were talking about Troy and Sharpay, and he told me that he didn't like her anymore, and that he liked someone else, and I thought maybe he meant me. You know, I let myself believe that maybe, just maybe he liked me as more than just a friend, but I was wrong" I said, crying.

"Oh Kayla, did he tell you he didn't like you" Gabi asked, enveloping me into a hug.

"No, but he didn't have to. He said that he couldn't ask the girl he liked to Homecoming because by the time he got the courage to ask her, she already had a date" I told her.

"Well how do you know he didn't mean you" Gabi asked.

"Because I didn't have a date until Wednesday when Troy asked me because he was too afraid to ask the girl he really wanted" I said.

"Oh, well you know what? Forget about him. If he can't see you for the amazing person you are, then you don't need him. I'm sure there are tons of guys who would love to date you, so you're gonna dry up those tears, fix your make-up, and go find someone who appreciates you and all the fabulousness that you are" Gabi said.

"You sounded just like Sharpay" I told her, laughing.

"Thanks, I think" Gabi said.

"It was a compliment Gabi, and you're right. I am done worrying about whether or not Zeke likes me. It's time for me to give some other East High guys a chance. Who knows, maybe one of them is my knight in shining armor or something" I said.

"Right, so let's fix you up, and then you can go work that dress" Gabi said, wiping my face with a tissue.

"Ok, now that my mini-meltdown is over, what's up with you and Ryan" I asked as I was re-applying my make-up.

"What do you mean" Gabi asked.

"Well, up until Wednesday, you two were just friends, but my sources tell me that neither of you could stop smiling after he asked you, so I'm thinking there is more than just friendship there" I said.

"Well between you and me, I'm kinda hoping there is. Ryan is so amazing. He's talented, gorgeous, a great dresser, and the sweetest person you'll ever meet" Gabi told me.

"Well, I hope it works out for you two. You both definitely deserve it" I said.

"Thank you. Now let's go put that brother unapproved dress to work" Gabi said as we left the restroom and entered the gym arm in arm.

"Hey guys, what's up" I asked Chad and Taylor when Gabi and I saw them in the gym.

"Nothing really, they're announcing king and queen in a few minutes" Chad said.

"Oh good, we didn't miss it" I said.

"We already know Chad and Tay are gonna win, so it wouldn't have mattered if we did" Gabi said.

"Well, you know how we do" Chad said.

"Tay, why are you being so quiet" Gabi asked, noticing Taylor hadn't said anything since we got there.

"Yeah, and why are you looking at me like that" I asked, noticing that while Taylor hadn't said anything to us, she was giving me strange looks.

"Oh sorry, I was just trying to figure out what was wrong with you" Taylor told me.

"There's nothing wrong with me Tay. I'm having a great time" I told her.

"No, I just figured it out. You've been crying, and don't you dare try to deny it. Tell me why you were crying" Taylor said.

"Kay, were you crying" Chad asked.

"Yeah, I was, but Gabi fixed it. She gave me some good advice that I plan to put to use as soon as you two are announced king and queen" I said.

"Well why were you crying" Taylor asked.

"Yeah, and who made you cry" Chad asked.

"Guys, it really doesn't matter. It's been handled, and I'm fine. Now you both promised that you would let me handle things myself, so let me deal with this my way. Besides, it's almost time for you two to accept your crowns" I said.

"Well at least tell us what advice Gabi gave you so we have a clue as to what's going on" Chad said.

"She told me to find a guy who would appreciate me and all the fabulousness that I am" I told him.

"Gabi, you've been hanging around Sharpay too much" Taylor said.

"I told her that she sounded like Sharpay" I said.

"Well that's not all I told her. I also said for her to work her brother unapproved dress" Gabi said, eyeing Chad.

"Hey, there will be no working of anything. You guys are bad influences on my little sister" Chad said.

"Like you'll even notice if I'm working it or not. You're so wrapped up in Tay that I bet you'll lose sight of everything around you as soon as Gabi and I leave you alone" I said.

"Well then could you leave us alone" Chad asked.

"I'll leave you alone as soon as king and queen are announced, and then I'll go work my dress" I told him.

"Hey, what did I just say" Chad asked.

"You just told me to leave you and Tay alone, when I do that, I'm working my dress. You can't expect me to just sit down while everyone else is having fun" I said.

"I thought you were dancing with Troy" Chad said.

"Wow, you really do lose track of everything when you're with Tay. Troy has been dancing with Sharpay for like the past hour, and they're probably just as lost in each other as you and Tay were" I said.

"Well since Troy is dancing with Shar, why don't you dance with Zeke" Chad suggested.

"I already did that, then I told him to go find the girl he liked. I'm not sure if he found her yet though" I told him.

"Kayla, you're the one…" Chad started, but was interrupted by Ms. Darbus.

"Students, students may I have your attention please. It's time to announce this year's Homecoming king and queen. The winners are… Chad Danforth and Taylor McKessie. Congratulations" Ms. Darbus said.

"Congrats you two" Gabi and I said, giving Chad and Tay quick hugs as they made their way up to the stage to get their crowns.

"Hmm, I wonder what Chad was gonna tell me" I said to Gabi.

"You could always ask him later, but for now, you need to go find a guy to dance with" Gabi said.

"And you need to go find Ryan and work on that more than friendship thing" I told her.

"I plan to, but have you seen Kelsi lately? I wanted to ask her something" Gabi said.

"Umm, actually, I haven't seen her, Jason, or Ryan since we took pictures. Oh wait, there she is, but good luck getting her away from Jason" I said, pointing to a corner of the gym where Jason and Kelsi were dancing like they were the only ones in the room.

"Oh, I guess my question will have to wait then. There's no way I'm interrupting them" Gabi said.

"Good thinking, now go find Ryan" I told her.

"Not until you…" Gabi started, but was interrupted by Derek, a really cute member of the football team.

"Hi Gabi, hi Kayla. Am I interrupting anything" Derek asked.

"Umm, that depends on what you want" Gabi told him.

"I wanted to ask Kayla to dance" Derek said.

"In that case, you're not interrupting a thing" Gabi said.

"Umm, so Kayla, do you wanna dance" Derek asked.

"Yeah Derek, I'd love to dance with you. Gabi, go find Ryan" I said as Derek and I headed to the dance floor.

I spent the rest of the night dancing and having fun with Derek and a few other guys until Ms. Darbus announced the last dance and Troy came to find me so we could dance the last dance together.

**Please leave a review. Thank you.**


	15. Homecoming Afterglow

**I only own Kayla, and HSM2 never happened**.

Chapter 15: Homecoming Afterglow

"So, how was everyone's night" Gabi asked once we got settled in at Taylor's.

"I had a great time" Kelsi said.

"Me too, it was definitely the best Homecoming ever" Taylor said.

"Of course it was, Your Royal Highness, you got queen" Sharpay teased.

"Pay, you can't honestly say you didn't have fun" Taylor said.

"No, I definitely had fun, though not as much as others" Sharpay said, looking at me.

"What? I had fun, isn't that what you're supposed to do at Homecoming" I asked.

"Yeah, but it seems as if you had more fun after king and queen were announced" Sharpay said.

"You did become the life of the party after Chad and I left you with Gabi" Taylor said.

"Yeah, you even managed to distract Jason and I for a few minutes" Kelsi said.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to distract anyone, I was just trying to have a good time" I said.

"Don't be sorry Kayla, Jason and I needed a small break from each other" Kelsi said.

"Yeah, you two were kinda wrapped up in each other off in that corner" Gabi said.

"Hey, don't hate on Kelsi just because she decided to spend some quiet time with her boyfriend, even if it was in a loud, crowded gym" I said.

"Kayla, I caught that" Kelsi said, sticking her tongue out at me. "Anyway, when I did manage to pull myself away from Jason, I noticed that you were a bit wrapped up in Ryan, Miss Gabriella. Care to explain?"

"I guess you weren't that wrapped up, huh? But yeah, I was a bit wrapped up in Ry. We're working on building something, and it's coming along very nicely" Gabi said.

"Uh huh. Gabi, we're your girls, not your mother. You can tell us the truth and not give us that whole innocent bit" Taylor said.

"Fine, I really like him, and he likes me, and our relationship is going in a new direction. I think he might ask me to be his girlfriend soon" Gabi said.

"Ooh, go Gabi. Care to give us some insight as to when he might be asking her, twin sister" Taylor asked Sharpay.

"I wish I could, but Ry won't tell me a thing. Usually he fills me in, and lets me know his plans for girls he likes, but not this time. He said that he can't tell me anything because he thinks I'll tell Gabi" Sharpay said.

"Oh, Shar, I don't mean to come between you and Ryan" Gabi said.

"Gabi, you're not coming between us. This just means that he really likes you, and doesn't want me to mess things up by telling you things before he gets a chance to" Sharpay said.

"So you think he's serious about me" Gabi asked.

"He's definitely serious about you, but I should warn you, his family is slightly crazy, especially his twin sister" Sharpay said, smiling.

"I think I can handle slightly crazy" Gabi said, laughing.

"Ok, now that we've taken care of one potential new couple, let's move on to the next, Pay and Troy" Taylor said.

"Wait, before we talk about that, Gabi are you ok with me possibly dating Troy? I mean, our friendship is at a really good point, and I don't wanna mess it up because of a guy. If you don't want…" Sharpay said, but was interrupted by Gabi.

"Shar, stop. Our friendship won't be messed up if you decide to date Troy. I've moved on, and so should he, and I'd rather he move on with someone nice like you, than someone who would just be using him to get popular" Gabi said.

"Wow Gabi, nine months ago, there's no way you would've been calling me nice. We've come a long way girlfriend" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, we have, and I'm glad. It's nice being friends instead of enemies" Gabi said.

"It really is, and if I haven't already done so, I would like to apologize for the way I acted when you first came to East High. It was horrible, and I shouldn't done what I did" Sharpay said.

"It's ok Shar, just think of it this way, we'll have some great stories to tell our kids in the distant future" Gabi said, hugging Sharpay.

"Aww" Kelsi, Taylor, and I said.

"Shut up you guys" Sharpay said.

"Ok, can we get back to the gossip please? Pay, what's up with you and Troy" Taylor asked.

"Well, we talked a lot while we were dancing, and we came to an understanding. We're just gonna see how things go, and they'll go well" Sharpay said.

"How did you two end up dancing together anyway" Kelsi asked.

"Yeah, you and Kayla told me that you weren't gonna switch dates" Taylor said.

"I'm curious as to how that happened myself. I didn't know anything about a switch until Troy came over to me and Zeke" Sharpay said.

"Well Miss Kayla, did you have anything to do with that" Taylor asked.

"I may have suggested that Troy go talk to Pay" I said.

"Suggested" Sharpay said, raising her eyebrow.

"Ok, ok, I literally pushed him into going to talk to you" I said.

"You pushed him" Kelsi asked.

"Yeah, he was gonna wait til tomorrow, well today I guess since it's after midnight, but I told him not to wait, and gave him a push in the right direction" I said.

"So it's ok for you to interfere in my life, but I can't interfere in yours" Sharpay said.

"Pay, you know that's not fair, and the situations are completely different. You were preventing guys from asking me out, while I convinced the guy that you like and who likes you to talk to you. If I had figured out that Troy liked you and done nothing, you would be mad at me" I said.

"You're right Kayla, I'm sorry. The situations really are different. Thank you for making Troy come talk to me tonight" Sharpay said, giving me a hug.

"Wait, Kayla you said you figured out that Troy liked Sharpay, he didn't tell you that he liked her" Kelsi asked.

"No, we were talking about our crushes while we were dancing, and he told me that there was a rumor going around that I like a basketball player, which was confirmed by Bobby, and…" I said, getting interrupted by Sharpay.

"When did you talk to Bobby" Sharpay asked.

"That's beside the point, and I'll tell you later. Anyway, Troy wouldn't tell me who he had a crush on, but he did tell me that she was wearing a gold dress. Since only five girls were wearing gold, it was easy for me to figure out who he liked when I added the clues he gave us Wednesday" I said.

"So you did the math and solved the equation" Gabi said.

"You do know that you're not supposed to do math at school dances right, Kayla" Kelsi said.

"I know that, but it was important" I said.

"Well, I'm glad you did the math" Sharpay said.

"I am too, but like Pay asked earlier, when did you talk to Bobby" Taylor asked.

"After I made Troy go talk to Pay. I went to sit down and people-watch, when Bobby came and sat with me. He mentioned that he hadn't spoken to me in awhile, and asked why I hadn't called him. I told him that I had been busy and lost his number, which he offered to me again. I told him that I didn't think we would be a good match, which is when he told me about the rumor floating around. He assumed that because I supposedly like a basketball player we would be a good match since he plays basketball, and, according to him, he's the finest guy in school and I'm kinda cute" I said.

"That conceited jerk. I hope you told him off" Sharpay said.

"I did, and I think he got the message that I'm not interested. I told him off, then walked away from him, right into Zeke" I said.

"So, how did it go with you and Zeke" Sharpay asked.

"Not well, I found out he doesn't like me" I said.

"How did you find that out" Taylor asked.

"She did the math" Gabi said.

"You and your math" Sharpay said.

"Whatever Pay" I said.

"Kayla, how do you know that he doesn't like you" Kelsi asked.

"Well, I thought maybe he did like me up until he said that by the time he got the courage to ask out the girl he liked, she already had a date. I knew he wasn't talking about me because I didn't have a date until Troy asked me on Wednesday" I said.

"Oh Kayla, I'm so sorry" Sharpay said.

"It's ok. I'm ok. I had a bit of a meltdown in the bathroom, but Gabi fixed everything, and helped me out. I swear it was like she was channeling you or something Pay" I said.

"Oh really? Gabi, you're channeling me now" Sharpay asked.

"I just told her to forget about Zeke and find someone who appreciates her and all the fabulousness that she is" Gabi said.

"Fabulousness huh? You're using versions of my favorite word now. We really are close" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, I guess we are Shar, but that's not the only thing I told her. I also told her to work her brother unapproved dress, which she did very nicely might I add" Gabi said.

"So that's why you became the life of the party" Sharpay said.

"I guess so. I was just taking Gabi's advice, and trying to have a good time. I wasn't trying to be the life of the party or anything" I said.

"Oh, you definitely became the life of the party. I had to drag Chad out of the gym just so he wouldn't go over to where you were and cause a scene. He was about to go deal with everyone anyway when Troy volunteered to take care of everything" Taylor said.

"I wondered why Troy really came to dance with me instead of finishing the dance with Pay. He said he wouldn't have felt right if he didn't dance the last dance with me, which I totally didn't believe" I said.

"Yeah, Troy and I had finished dancing and were waiting for everyone else to finish when we noticed that Chad and Tay were arguing. When we found out why, Troy said he would go dance with you so Chad would calm down" Sharpay said.

"Oh Tay, I didn't mean to make you and Chad fight. I didn't realize I was doing anything wrong" I said.

"Kay, you weren't doing anything wrong. Chad just didn't like the way some of the guys were looking at you, and frankly I didn't either. We weren't arguing about you, but about how to handle the guys you were dancing with. He wanted to just go over and knock them all out, while I wanted to just pull you off to the side and let you know what was going on" Taylor said.

"Well, why didn't you just do that instead of arguing with Chad" I asked.

"Because if I had left your brother alone for even one second, he would've made a beeline directly for you, then you two would have had a big blow up about him interfering, and then you would be mad at each other, and you would still be angry about it now" Taylor said.

"Wow, I didn't know Chad and I were that bad" I said.

"When you two get into it, it's horrible. You both say the other one is the one who did wrong, though in this case, it would've been Chad, but that is beside the point. I just wanted to prevent you two from getting into a big unnecessary fight" Taylor said.

"Well, I and the guys I was dancing with thank you very much" I said.

"You're welcome, and speaking of the guys you were dancing with, did any of them catch your eye" Taylor asked.

"Well, Derek was kinda cute, and he seemed really nice. What's his story" I asked.

"Hmm, Derek, huh? He's a pretty good guy. He's not arrogant or anything, even though he's one of the best football players at East High, but he's not very smart either. He is a total sweetheart though" Sharpay said.

"So he's not a heartbreaker or anything" I asked.

"No, if anything, you'll wind up breaking his heart" Taylor said.

"Hmm, I think I'll keep him in mind but still keep my options open. He's someone I'd like to get to know a little better" I said.

"Well did anyone else interest you" Kelsi asked.

"No, not really, I didn't talk to anyone else really, just danced with them" I said.

"Maybe we should help you find someone" Gabi said.

"Thanks, but no thanks. When it's my time, my guy will find me" I said.

"That's the spirit Kayla, one day your prince will come" Kelsi said.

"Ok Kels, let's not go all Disney on her or anything" Sharpay joked.

"Whatever Shar" Kelsi said, tossing a pillow at Sharpay, starting a pillow fight.

After Taylor ended our pillow fight by reminding us that we weren't supposed to wake her parents, we talked some more about Homecoming, then drifted off to sleep with the memories playing in our heads.

**Please leave a review, thank you.**


	16. Opening Night

**I only own Kayla, everything else belongs to Disney, including "Cheetah Sisters" and the Cheetah Girls, and HSM2 never happened. Enjoy**

Chapter 16: Opening Night

_Two weeks later…_

After weeks of rehearsal, opening night is finally here. Gabi, Sharpay and I are in our shared dressing room warming up and getting ready. Ryan and Sharpay did their pre-show warm-up ritual, then Sharpay sent Ryan back to the dressing room he was sharing with Chad and Troy so Gabi wouldn't be distracted by him and vice versa.

"Hey guys" Kelsi said, entering our dressing room.

"Hey Kels" Sharpay, Gabi, and I said.

"Ms. Darbus wanted me to make sure you guys are ready. We have about twenty minutes til curtain" Kelsi said.

"I'm ready, but my voice doesn't feel quite right" Gabi said.

"Yeah, me too. I did my warm-ups and everything, but something is off" Sharpay agreed.

"Hmm, maybe we should sing a song or something because my voice feels off too" I said.

"Guys, I don't have any music with me" Kelsi said.

"That's ok, we can sing a capella, but what should we sing" Gabi asked.

"It can't be too fast, but it can't be too slow either" Sharpay said.

"Umm, how about the chorus to 'Cheetah Sisters'" I suggested.

"By the Cheetah Girls" Sharpay asked.

"Don't act like you've never heard it. I know for a fact that you have the soundtrack to both of their movies, and besides, the lyrics kind of fit us" I said.

"Alright, I'm in" Sharpay said.

"Me too" Gabi said.

"Ok, on three, one, two, three" Kelsi said, counting us off so we could sing.

_We are sisters, we stand together_

_We make up one big family though we don't look the same_

_Our spots are different, different colors,_

_We make each other stronger that ain't ever gonna change_

_Believe it mister, mister, mister we're Cheetah Girls, Cheetah Sisters_

"Wow guys, that was great" Troy said, entering our dressing room with Ryan.

"Yeah, you guys sounded perfect" Ryan added.

"We didn't feel quite ready, so we decided to sing that" Sharpay said.

"Do you feel ready now" Ryan asked.

"Yeah, I think that did the trick" Gabi said, with Sharpay and I nodding in agreement.

"Guys, where's Chad" I asked.

"He's refusing to leave the dressing room, so we thought we'd come get reinforcements" Troy said.

"WHAT?! If he's gone all diva on us I swear I'm gonna kill him" Sharpay said.

"Sharpay chill. He hasn't gone diva. This is his first performance. Think back to how you felt before your first performance, and maybe you'll be a little more sensitive to how he's feeling right now" I said.

"Sorry Kayla, I wasn't thinking" Sharpay said.

"Ok, so Chad's a little nervous. It's no big deal, we just have to get him to relax and let him know that he'll be fine" Gabi said.

"We tried that already, but it didn't work" Ryan said.

"We thought that maybe you guys could talk to him and get him to leave the dressing room" Troy said.

"I'll go talk to him" I said.

"Do you need back up" Kelsi asked.

"No, I can handle it" I told her.

"Little sister to the rescue" Troy said as I left the room.

"Hey Chad, can I come in" I asked, knocking on the guys' dressing room door.

"Yeah Kayla, come on in" Chad said.

"Troy and Ryan told us you were refusing to leave the dressing room" I said, sitting in one of the chairs.

"Kay, I can't do this. I mean what if I forget my lines, or the lyrics to the songs, or the dance steps? I'll look like an idiot, and I can't have people laughing at me. I never should have let you talk me into this" Chad said.

"Ok, first of all, you need to stop caring so much about what people think about you. That's your main problem. Everyone isn't gonna like you, and that should be ok with you. You're a great person, and if people wanna judge you because you have one or two flaws, then that's too bad for them. Secondly, you let me talk you into this because you wanted to do this. As convincing as I am, I've never been able to talk you into doing anything you didn't want to do. I've never understood why you didn't want people to know that you're talented in something other than basketball, and I probably never will, but right now, there are lots of people counting on you to showcase that talent. You've been to every rehearsal, we've practiced together at home with just the two of us, and with Ry, Pay, Troy, Gabi, and Kelsi. You know the steps, you know the songs, and you know your lines. You could do this in your sleep, and actually you have. You are so ready to do this Chad" I said.

"I was doing the musical in my sleep" Chad asked.

"Yeah, you were. Mom and dad were standing in your doorway one night, and when I asked them what they were doing, they moved over so I could see. You were lying in your bed, completely asleep, going through the entire "Greased Lightning" scene, complete with dance moves" I told him.

"There's no footage of this is there" Chad asked.

"No, but it wasn't for lack of trying. Mom wouldn't let me go get a camera" I told him.

"Remind me to thank her for that" Chad said.

"So are you ready to go knock em dead" I asked.

"Not yet. How did you get over your nerves before your first show? You were nervous weren't you" Chad asked.

"Of course I was nervous. I'm nervous now, but I've learned to control my nerves. I think that it's when you're not nervous that you mess up" I said.

"Ok, but that doesn't answer my question" Chad said.

"Well to answer it, you helped me get over my nerves" I told him.

"Me? How could I have helped you when I didn't even talk to you" Chad asked.

"Well, before the show, I was just as nervous as you, if not more. I was scared to go on stage, but Ryan and Sharpay gave me a pep talk that got me out on stage. I looked out and saw all the people in the audience, and almost ran off, but then I saw you. You smiled and waved at me, and I knew I could do it. I knew I had people out there who supported me, and that gave me the confidence to perform, and you have people out there who support you. There's mom and dad, and Taylor, and Jason and Zeke, the entire basketball team, and your personal fan club. Plus your biggest fan will be right up on stage with you" I said.

"Sharpay and I are friends and all, but I doubt she's my biggest fan" Chad said.

"Not her you dork, I meant me" I said, hitting Chad in the head.

"You're my biggest fan" Chad asked.

"Well duh Chad. I've always been your biggest fan. You've never noticed because I'm not a member of your fan club, but I've been cheering you on since forever. Even when I was in New York, I was cheering for you when your games started. Chad, I know you can do anything you want to, and that gives me the courage to do what I want" I told him.

"Alright then, let's do this" Chad said.

"Really? You're ready" I asked.

"How can I not be when I have support in the audience, and my number one fan on stage with me" Chad said.

"Ok then, let's go before Sharpay has a fit" I said.

"How did she react when she heard I wasn't leaving the dressing room" Chad asked.

"She thought you were going diva on us, and threatened to kill you" I told him as we left the dressing room.

"Oh really" Chad said.

"Kayla you got him out. Thank god. Ms. Darbus was gonna make us work around his part since "the theater waits for no one," but that wouldn't have worked because he's in most of the scenes" Kelsi said, coming up to us.

"Have no fear, Chad is here" Chad said.

"Chad it's nice to see that you're back to normal" Troy said as he, Gabi, Ryan, and Sharpay joined us.

"Yeah, I just needed a pep talk from my little sister. Oh, and Sharpay, I would never try to take your title from you. There's only room for one diva, and we all know that's you" Chad said.

"Whatever Chad, you just better be ready because we only have a few minutes til show time" Sharpay said.

"Don't worry Shar, I'm good" Chad told her.

"Ahh, Mr. Danforth, so nice of you to join us. I see Miss Danforth has worked her magic and gotten you out of that dressing room" Ms. Darbus said, joining us.

"Yeah, sorry about that Ms. Darbus. I just let my nerves get the best of me, but they're under control now" Chad told her.

"That's quite alright Mr. Danforth, a little nervousness is good before a performance. Kelsi, what time do you have" Ms. Darbus asked.

"It's seven fifty-eight Ms. Darbus" Kelsi told her.

" Alright, places everyone. We have two minutes til curtain" Ms. Darbus said.

Everyone headed to their spots and waited for our cues so we could start the show.

"Oh my god, that was so incredibly great" Chad said once the musical was over and we were all backstage.

"And you didn't want to go out there" Sharpay teased.

"Now I understand why you always loved performing Kayla. This is better than winning a basketball championship" Chad said.

"Ok, who are you and what have you done with my big brother" I asked.

"He'll be back to normal once the performance high wears off Kayla. I thought the same thing after "Twinkle Town," but after I calmed down, I realized it was almost as good, but not better" Troy said.

"Ok, maybe I am exaggerating a bit, but this still feels great" Chad said.

"Ok, it's time to celebrate our accomplishment, and relax after all our hard work" Sharpay said.

"Shar, we have to wait for Zeke, Taylor, and Jason" Gabi said.

We're having a cast party backstage, and Ms. Darbus said we could each invite one person. Gabi invited Taylor, Kelsi invited Jason, and Chad invited Zeke. I wondered why Chad invited Zeke instead of Taylor, but I didn't bother asking him. I ended up inviting Derek, but he couldn't make it because he had to go out of town with his family. Troy, Ryan, and Sharpay didn't invite anyone since our "group" was already coming, because we were in the cast or had already been invited by a cast member.

"While you guys wait for them, I have to go do a post-show ritual, so I'll see you in a few minutes" I said, going to my dressing room.

Honestly, I don't have a post-show ritual, but I needed to get away from everyone, and clear my head. I couldn't get our last song out of my head, and it was making me sad.

"We'll always be together. Yeah right, more like we'll be together until we graduate" I said, taking a hair pin out of my hair, and throwing it on the vanity.

"Kayla? Chad sent me to get you. Are you done with your ritual" Zeke asked, knocking on the door, then entering the dressing room.

"What ritual" I asked him.

"Sharpay said you were in here doing a post-show ritual" Zeke said.

"Oh that, yeah I'm done" I told him.

"So are you ready to go party" Zeke asked.

"I guess so" I said.

"Kayla, what's wrong" Zeke asked.

"Nothing really, I'm just being overemotional" I told him.

"Well, I'm here for you if you want to talk" Zeke said.

"Ok, but it's really silly. That last song we sang made me kinda sad" I said.

"'We'll Always Be Together'? Kay, that's not a sad song" Zeke said.

"I know, that's why I feel so silly. It's a happy song, but it's not true. I mean think about it, high school seniors pledging to always be together. It's so unrealistic. We say we're gonna stay together, and be friends forever, but it never works" I said.

"We" Zeke asked.

"What are you talking about" I asked him.

"We, you said we" Zeke said.

"Well I meant us, I mean them. Yeah, I meant them. They pledged to be friends forever, but they probably didn't see each other again until their reunion" I said.

"Kay, you're not a very good liar" Zeke said.

"Fine, I'm talking about us. What's gonna happen to us when we graduate? I mean, the ten of us are extremely close now, but what about when we go off to college? What then Zeke? We go our separate ways, and only see each other at reunions? I don't want us to be like that" I said, crying.

"Kay, come here. I don't know what the future holds, but I think the ten of us will be alright. Maybe we won't be as close as we are right now, but I'm sure we'll still be friends. That I can almost guarantee" Zeke said, pulling me into a hug, and letting me cry in his arms.

"Guys, what's taking you so long" Taylor asked, coming into the dressing room with Sharpay.

"Yeah Zeke, you were just supposed to come get her, not chill in here" Troy said as he and Chad entered the room.

"Kay, what's wrong with you" Chad asked when he saw me wiping my eyes.

"Yeah, why are you crying" Troy asked.

"Zeke, I swear if you made her cry again, you're dead" Sharpay yelled, causing Ryan, Jason, Kelsi, and Gabi to come running into the room.

"Again?! You've made her cry before" Chad asked.

"Chad chill. Zeke doesn't know what Pay is talking about, and Pay, Zeke didn't make me cry this time" I said.

"I've made you cry before" Zeke asked.

"Yeah, but it wasn't your fault, I was just being overemotional" I said.

"Well, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry" Zeke said.

"It's ok Zeke, I know you didn't mean to" I told him.

"Kayla, if Zeke didn't make you cry, then why were you crying" Ryan asked.

"It's not important. Actually, it's really silly. I was just being overemotional as usual. You'd think that with all the growing up I've done the past few years I'd have grown out of that, but I haven't" I said.

"Kayla, you're not overemotional, just sensitive, and your sensitivity is a part of what makes you who you are" Jason said.

"Jason's right Kay, now tell us what's wrong with you" Taylor said.

"Fine, our last song got to me" I said.

"'We'll Always Be Together'" Sharpay asked.

"Kay is afraid that once we graduate, we'll all go our separate ways, and only see each other at reunions" Zeke said.

"Is that true Kay" Troy asked.

"Well yeah, I mean we're inseparable now, but what about five years from now, or even one year from now? I just got you guys back, and I don't want to lose you again" I said.

"Kay, you won't lose us again. You never really lost us in the first place" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, you've been stuck with me since the day you were born" Chad said.

"And you're stuck with the rest of us til the day you die" Zeke said.

"Aww, you guys" I said, understanding that no matter what, we really would be friends forever.

"I think this calls for a group hug" Taylor said.

After we hugged, I pulled back, and noticed Gabi and Kelsi were standing off to the side, and not participating in the hug.

"Gabi, Kelsi, what are you two doing over there" I asked.

"Well, that seemed like a family moment, and we didn't want to intrude" Kelsi said.

"It was, but you wouldn't have been intruding. You two are my family too. I just got you, and I certainly don't want to lose you" I said.

"Oh Kayla" Kelsi and Gabi said as the three of us hugged.

"Ok, I think we should get to the party before Ms. Darbus comes looking for us" I said.

"Umm, you guys go ahead, I need to talk to Shar" Troy said.

"Gabi, could you stay in here too? I wanted to ask you something" Ryan said.

"Don't stay in here too long guys, we wouldn't want you miss the party" I said as we left the room.

"I think they're gonna ask them" Taylor said once we were a safe distance from the dressing room.

"Of course they're gonna ask them, it's a perfect opportunity" I said.

"Ask them what" Chad, Jason, and Zeke asked.

"To be their girlfriends, duh" Kelsi said.

"Oh, right" Chad said.

"So that'll be eight down and two to go" Taylor said.

"What are you talking about Tay" I asked.

"Well, everyone in our group is all paired up except you and Zeke, which is the eight down and two to go. We just need to find someone for the two of you" Taylor said.

"Tay, didn't I tell you guys after Homecoming that I wasn't looking for anyone anymore? When the time is right, he'll find me, and I doubt Zeke wants you looking for someone for him either" I told her, ignoring the look Chad gave Zeke.

"She's right Tay, I think I'll be able to find my girl real soon" Zeke said.

"Well hurry up and find her so Tay can get off my case about your relationship status" Chad said, earning a slap to the back of the head from Taylor.

"I think you guys should take your time, and not worry about what everyone else is doing" Kelsi said.

"Thank you for being the voice of reason Kelsi. It's really appreciated" I said, just as Ryan and Troy ran out of the dressing room.

"She said yes, she said yes" Troy and Ryan shouted happily to everyone.

"Congratulations" everyone said, even though most people didn't have a clue as to what either of them were talking about. Zeke, Chad, and Jason gave them "man" hugs, while Kelsi, Taylor, and I gave them hugs and friendly kisses then took off to the dressing room where Sharpay and Gabi were to get details. After we received our answers, we all headed back to the party to have fun, and celebrate the two new couples.

**Please leave a review, thank you.**


	17. Birthday Preparations

**Sorry it's taken almost two weeks to update, this was supposed to be the first part of a really long chapter, but it's taking me longer than I thought it would to write the second part of this chapter, so I'm giving you this part, and will update as soon as the rest is finished. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this and it tides you over until I can finish the rest. Only Kayla, James, Jack, and Jenny are mine, and HSM2 never happened.**

Chapter 17: Birthday Preparations

_A week later…_

"Chad, you cannot be serious. Your eighteenth birthday is in one week, and you don't have anything planned" I said.

Chad and I have been discussing his birthday plans, or lack thereof, all morning. It's one of those rare days when it's just the two of us, and although I'm enjoying spending time with him, his lack of enthusiasm for his birthday is irritating me.

"Kay, I told you, I don't want to make a big deal about my birthday. It's two days after Thanksgiving, plus we have a game that day" Chad said.

"Those are not good excuses Chad. Everyone is staying in town for Thanksgiving, and the game is at four, so there's plenty of time for you guys to win the game, relax, and then party" I said.

"There's no guarantee that we're gonna win" Chad said.

"Whatever. You should still celebrate your birthday cause you only turn eighteen once" I told him.

"I know that. That's the problem, I'm turning eighteen, but all my friends are still seventeen. You're supposed to go to a club with your friends to celebrate your eighteenth birthday, but none of my friends can get into a club" Chad said.

"Oh, I guess it sucks to be the oldest member of our group, but you won't be eighteen by yourself for long. Zeke turns eighteen next month, then you two could go to a club, and celebrate his birthday, and maybe find him a girl" I said.

"I doubt Zeke will find the girl he wants in a club, but I guess I can wait until Zeke's birthday to get my club experience" Chad said.

"Well, what about your birthday" I asked.

"You're not gonna let this go until I tell you I want to celebrate my birthday, are you" Chad asked.

"You know me well enough to already know the answer to that" I told him.

"Fine, let's celebrate my birthday. I know you have something in mind, so let's hear it" Chad said.

"Hold on, I just have to make a quick phone call" I told him, pulling out my cell phone.

"Hey Taylor, he said yes. How soon can you get here" I asked once Taylor answered her phone.

"As soon as you open the door" Taylor said.

"Ok, I'll be right there" I told her, hanging up the phone.

"Hey girls" I said, opening the door for Taylor and Sharpay.

"Hey" they replied as we went to the family room where I had left Chad.

"I see you finally decided to listen to your little sister. I swear I don't know why she cares so much" Sharpay said as we all sat down.

"I care so much because I love my big brother, and want to see him happy" I told her.

"I love you too Kay, but I'm wondering what you three are up to" Chad said.

"Kayla came to us a few weeks ago, and asked us if we would help her throw you a birthday party, so we started making plans" Taylor said, pulling out the notebook with all the party plans.

"Wait, a few weeks ago? So you three just knew I would say yes to celebrating" Chad asked.

"Not exactly, if you had said no, we would have just gone to Tay's and continued to plan this as a surprise party" Sharpay said.

"But since you said yes, you get to have some input" I told him.

"Well thank you for allowing me to have some input. Now let's see what you have planned" Chad said.

"Ok, we were thinking we'd have it here after the game, and mom has already given and gotten permission for everyone in our group to sleep over" I said.

"Will mom and dad be here" Chad asked.

"No, they've agreed to stay at a hotel, but Jack and Jenny are coming over to make sure no one does anything stupid" I said.

"Who are Jack and Jenny" Sharpay asked.

"They're our twenty-one year-old twin cousins, but they're totally cool" I said.

"Except for when it comes to Kayla" Chad said.

"Why do you make them uncool Kayla" Sharpay asked.

"Well, they're both extremely protective of me" I said.

"How protective" Taylor asked.

"Take the way Chad and Sharpay used to act and multiply that by five" I said.

"Wow, and I thought Chad and I were bad" Sharpay said.

"I have to give it to you two. You've come a long way. I'll just talk to Jack and Jenny, and they should behave. Anyway, let's get back to party planning. Chad, since you were so bummed about not being able to wear costumes to Homecoming, we thought we'd throw you a costume party" I said.

"I'm guessing you guys already have costumes picked out" Chad said.

"Yes, and you will love them. You're matching with the three of us, and here is a picture of what the costumes will look like" Taylor said, showing Chad a picture of our costumes.

"Ok, next is food. Zeke is baking a bunch of goodies for us, and Sharpay's chef James is making everything else" I said as Taylor handed Chad the list of food Zeke and James were planning to prepare.

"If you want anything else, or don't want something that's on the list, just let me know, and I'll make the arrangements" Sharpay said.

"Everything looks good to me, but I can't believe Zeke knew about this, and didn't tell me" Chad said.

"Oh, he wanted to, but we convinced him that it would be in his best interest if he kept quiet about everything" I told him.

"You threatened Zeke" Chad asked me.

"Me? Come on Chad, you know I don't scare Zeke. Taylor and Sharpay did it" I said.

"Oh, that makes more sense" Chad said.

"Now, on to music. We've hired a deejay who is gonna bring all kinds of music, so people can request whatever they want. We were also thinking people could perform if they wanted" Sharpay said.

"And you guys will be performing too" Chad asked.

"We're trying to, but Taylor won't sing with Pay and I" I told him.

"Tay, why won't you perform with them" Chad asked.

"Because I can't sing, not like them anyway" Taylor said.

"Tay, we told you we would teach you and practice with you. All you have to do is agree to perform with us" I said.

"Yeah, it's TayPayKay, not PayKay, so you have to do it" Sharpay added.

"But I…"Taylor started, but was interrupted by Chad.

"Tay, it would really mean a lot to me if you would sing just one song at my birthday party" Chad said, giving Taylor a look that would melt even the iciest heart.

"Chad, you know I can't say no to that face. Fine, I'm in, but we have to practice a lot, and we have to do a song where I don't have a big part, and little to no solos" Taylor said.

"Hmm, a group song where one person has a smaller part than everyone else" I said.

"Ooh, we could do Destiny's Child, and give Taylor Michelle's part" Sharpay said.

"Let me guess, you want Beyonce's part" Chad said.

"Unless Kay wants it" Sharpay said.

"No, you can have it, and I'll do Kelly's part, but we'll probably have to modify whichever song we choose" I said.

"So which one should we do" Taylor asked,

"How about "Bootylicious"? We could do the dance moves and everything" Sharpay said.

"Uh uh, no way is my little sister gonna be up shaking her butt talking about how bootylicious she is" Chad said.

"Chad, I'm almost an adult, and can do what I want" I told him.

"But it's my birthday, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't do that song" Chad said.

"Fine, but only because it's your birthday. I guess we can pick a song later, so let's move on to decorations" I said, allowing Chad to get his way just this once.

"Here's the color scheme, and pictures of the decorations we're planning to use. Now this isn't set in stone or anything, so if you want to change anything, just tell us" Taylor said, showing Chad everything.

"No, everything looks good. I can't wait to see how it looks for real. When are you guys gonna decorate the house" Chad asked.

"Yeah, about that, Sharpay and I, and possibly Ryan and Gabi, will have to miss the game in order to make sure everything is ready for the party" I told him.

"So, Ryan and Gabi know about this, and all four of you are gonna miss the game" Chad asked.

"Gabi and Kelsi know about it because we've discussed it with them. Gabi volunteered to help Sharpay and I set everything up, and Kelsi said she'd go to the game to help Taylor cheer you guys on. Ryan doesn't know anything about it, though. Sharpay volunteered his services, but I'm gonna ask him if he wants to help" I said.

"So, it looks like you three have taken care of everything" Chad said.

"Well, is there anything we forgot that you want to add, or anything that you want to change? Like we said earlier, nothing is set in stone, and it is your party, so it should be what you want" I said.

"No, everything looks great. It's almost as if I sat down and planned it with you" Chad said.

"Well, when you have the two people who know you best, plus the most fabulous party planner in the world planning a party for you, it can't help but be great" Sharpay said.

"Well, thank you. I really appreciate what you guys have done for me" Chad said.

"Anytime big bro, but right now, we need to go finalize everything" I told him.

"Is there anything you need me to do" Chad asked.

"Actually, there is. Could you call Zeke, and let him know that you know about everything, and confirm that he'll be making what we've asked him to make" I asked.

"Sure thing. I'll tell the rest of the guys about the party too" Chad said.

"That would be great. If mom or dad get back before I do, could you let them know that I went to Pay's to finish the party preparations" I asked.

"Will do. See you guys later" Chad said as Taylor, Sharpay, and I headed for the door.

"Bye Chad" we replied.

We hopped into Taylor's car, and headed to Sharpay's house to finalize all the plans for Chad's birthday party, which didn't take long since everything was almost done anyway. We sampled some of the things James was making for the party, then spent the rest of the day picking out a song to sing, and practicing it until Taylor and I decided to head home.

**Thanks for reading, and please leave a review.**


	18. Happy Birthday Chad

**I don't own anything or anyone you recognize, including the songs, which belong to the artists mentioned with them. Special thanks to ****luvmexoxoGossipGal for giving me the idea for TayPayKay's costume. Enjoy**

Chapter 18: Happy Birthday Chad

_A week later…_

"Could you move the banner up and to the right a little" I asked one of the decorators.

"How's that" he asked after he moved the banner.

"It's perfect, thank you" I said, then headed to check on Sharpay and the food.

"Hey Pay, how's everything going in here" I asked as I entered the kitchen.

"Everything's great. Zeke and James really outdid themselves. Just wait til you see the cake they made" Sharpay said.

"I can only imagine. Since you seem to have everything under control in here, I'm gonna go check on Gabi and the music" I said.

"Ok, and if you see Ryan, could you send him in here please" Sharpay asked.

"Yeah, he's most likely with Gabi, so I'll send him to you" I told her.

"Thanks Kay" Sharpay said.

"You're welcome Pay" I said as I left the kitchen.

I headed to the family room, which had been cleared out, except for two of our couches, so we could use it as the dance floor, to look for Gabi and Ryan. We're using most of the main floor for the party, the food is going in the dining room once Zeke and James have out the finishing touches on it, and tables and chairs have been placed in the living room for when people want to eat or sit and talk. I found Gabi and Ryan exactly where I thought they'd be, slow dancing to some music the deejay was playing in front of the makeshift stage.

"Hey you two, you're supposed to be working, not playing" I said, entering the family room.

"Kayla, you know what they say, all work and no play makes for a really bad day" Ryan said as he and Gabi stopped dancing.

"Besides, we weren't playing, we were making sure everyone would be comfortable while they were dancing" Gabi said.

"Yeah, sure you were. Anyway, Ryan, Pay needs you in the kitchen, and Gabi, since everything in here is set up, could you help me set up more tables and chairs in the living room" I asked.

"Sure, I'll help you Kay" Gabi said.

"Thanks, and Ryan, I strongly suggest that you go see what your sister wants before she hunts you down" I said as Gabi and I headed to the living room.

"Right, let me go before Hurricane Sharpay hits" Ryan said, going to the kitchen.

"So I'm guessing everything is going well between you and Ryan" I said to Gabi as we started setting up tables and chairs.

"Yeah, everything is going great. He is so caring and thoughtful. I can't believe how lucky I am to have him" Gabi said.

"It's not luck Gabi, it's what you both deserve" I told her.

We continued setting up tables and chairs, and talking about random things when Zeke walked into the living room.

"Hey guys" Zeke said, getting our attention.

"Hey Zeke" Gabi said.

"What are you doing here? The game isn't over already is it? It's only six-thirty" I said.

"No, it's not over yet. We were up by fifteen, with only three minutes left, so coach pulled me out of the game and sent me over here to help out" Zeke said.

"Oh, then let's go to the kitchen so you and James can finish the food preparations" I said as Zeke, Gabi, and I headed to the kitchen.

"James, I brought you some help" I said once we entered the kitchen.

"Oh thank god, Ryan and I are absolutely no help in the kitchen" Sharpay said.

"James, what can I do to help" Zeke asked as he and James got right to work.

"Umm, Gabi and Ryan, since Pay and I can't get dressed until Chad and Tay get here, why don't you two go get changed, and then finish making sure everyone will be comfortable while they're dancing" I said.

"Are you sure, cause I'm sure there's something we could do to help" Gabi said.

"I'm positive. You two have helped enough already, and there isn't much left to do except supervise, and I'm sure Sharpay could handle that by herself, so go" I said, getting a playful shove from Sharpay as Ryan and Gabi ran off to finish what I had interrupted earlier.

"Sharpay can handle the supervising by herself" Sharpay said with a mock frown.

"Yes you can. Remind me what you've been doing in here all day" I said.

"I've been supervising James. Ok fine, you win, I can handle the supervising by myself. Anyway, what was that about Ry and Gabi making sure everyone is comfortable while they're dancing" Sharpay asked.

"When I went looking for them earlier, I found them slow dancing, and that was Gabi's excuse" I told her.

"Oh, that's not a bad excuse. I might have to use that one day" Sharpay said.

"Whatever. Anyway, how are things going with you and Troy? We haven't really talked about him since you two got together because of all the party plans and everything" I said.

"It's amazing, it's like the first time all over again, but this time we're not as immature and naïve, so I doubt we'll have the same problems as last time" Sharpay said.

"That's good, because I don't wanna have to knock some sense into you two, even though I will if it becomes necessary" I told her.

"Of course you will. That's what you do. We were missing that while you were gone. You always saw both sides, and it helped end a lot of arguments" Sharpay said.

"I'm glad I was able to help end arguments, and was never forced to take sides. I saw a few friendships break up at GLA because one friend chose between two others, and I never want to be in that position" I said.

"Hey, I hate to interrupt, but James and I need help taking the food to the dining room" Zeke said, stopping our conversation as Pay and I got up to help.

By the time we had transferred all the food, Taylor, Kelsi, and the rest of the guys had arrived, and Jason, Kelsi, and Troy, as well as Ryan and Gabi, had all changed into their costumes.

"So I see we have Marc Antony and Cleopatra, aka Ryan and Gabi, in attendance, as well as Aladdin and Jasmine, aka Jason and Kelsi. I am honored that you royal couples have chosen to attend my brother's party, and I hope it meets your expectations" I said, curtseying to them, then turning to Troy, who was dressed in sweatpants and a T-shirt. "Who exactly are you supposed to be?"

"I'm Jack Bolton" Troy said.

"Wow Troy, you sure put a lot of thought into your costume" Taylor said.

"Well, you guys stole my girl, so I couldn't do a couple's costume, and I only had one week to come up with something, and this was the only thing I could come up with. It's not like anyone picked out a costume for me" Troy said.

"Troy, or should I say Uncle Jack, you look fine. At least you'll be comfortable, unlike everyone else, except for maybe Zeke, whose costume we haven't seen yet" I said.

"Yeah Zeke, where's your costume" Jason asked.

"It's in the hall closet. I haven't had a chance to change yet, but I'll be almost as comfortable as Troy" Zeke said.

"You can change in my parent's room Zeke. Chad, Taylor, Sharpay, and I also need to go get dressed, so we'll be back in a few minutes" I said.

"Oh Troy, Jack and Jenny are supposed to be here in about twenty minutes, so if we're not back down by then could you let them in" Chad asked.

"It's gonna take you twenty minutes to get dressed" Troy asked him.

"No, but these three want me to make an entrance, and won't let me come down until they're ready" Chad said.

"Oh, then yeah, I'll let them in" Troy said.

"Thanks man" Chad said as we went upstairs.

"Zeke, could you let us know when you're going downstairs so we know when to come down" Sharpay asked once we were upstairs.

"Sure thing Shar" Zeke said as we went our separate ways, Taylor, Sharpay, and I to my room, Chad to his, and Zeke to my parents.

Surprisingly, it only took Taylor, Sharpay, and I ten minutes to get dressed and do our hair, and we were ready to go by the time Zeke knocked on my door to let us know that he was going downstairs. We waited a couple minutes, then grabbed Chad, and headed downstairs to everyone else.

"Zeke, you're a chef? The whole point of a costume is to be something you're not" Sharpay said as she, Taylor, and I entered the family room in our costumes, while Chad waited in the hallway for his cue.

"Shar, I'm not a chef in real life" Zeke said.

"Not yet, but you will be" Sharpay told him.

"Whatever. Anyway, what are you three supposed to be? I don't know many costumes that consist of leather catsuits" Zeke said.

"Yeah, are you supposed to be Catwoman without the mask or something" Jason asked.

"Nope, but see if you can guess" I said as Sharpay, Taylor, and I struck a pose.

"Oh, you're Charlie's Angels" Troy said.

"Close, but not quite. Tonight, these three are Chad's Angels" Chad said, entering right on cue in his black suit with matching black hat, standing behind Taylor, and putting an arm around Sharpay and I.

"Wow Chad, don't you look nice" Kelsi said.

"His Angels don't look bad either, they're actually very hot" Zeke said.

"No Zeke, I have to disagree. They're not hot, their sexy" Troy said.

"You're both wrong. My Angels are beautiful" Chad said.

"Aww" Gabi and Kelsi said as Sharpay and I kissed Chad on the cheek and Taylor gave him a small peck on the lips.

"Hey, that's not fair. Why does Chad get a triple kiss for saying you're beautiful, but Zeke and I get nothing for saying you're hot and sexy" Troy asked.

"Because beautiful trumps hot and sexy any day. Duh" Jason said, with Ryan nodding in agreement.

"Jason's right guys, and you should know that by now" Taylor said.

"Obviously Kelsi has been educating Jason on the female mind, and how it works, but someone still needs to do some educating" I said, looking at Sharpay.

"Hey, don't blame me. I've only had two weeks to work with him, and that's only when I wasn't helping with this party. I've had more time to work with Ryan who knew why Chad got kissed" Sharpay said.

"Shar, you've done a wonderful job with Ryan" Gabi said.

"See, I just need more time with Troy" Sharpay said, sticking her tongue out at me.

"Whatever Pay" I said, returning her gesture.

"Is this what you girls talk about at your sleepovers, who's been educating whom" Troy asked.

"No Troy, we talk about more than just you guys. You're not the center of our worlds, just a part of them" I told him.

"That's good because I don't want any guy being the center of my little cousin's world" my cousin Jack said as he and my other cousin, Jenny, entered the family room.

"Jackie, Jenny, hi" I said, hugging each of them.

"How many times do I have to tell you, it's Jack" Jack said as he and Jenny hugged Chad.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you'll always be Jackie to me" I asked him.

"While our siblings argue yet again, I want to wish you a happy birthday Chad" Jenny said, giving Chad a gift.

"Oh sorry guys, I guess it's time for introductions. Everybody, these are my cousins Jackson and Jennifer, but you can call them Jack and Jenny. Jack, Jenny, this is Taylor, Sharpay, Ryan, Gabi, Jason, Kelsi, Zeke, and you know Troy" I said.

"Hey everybody" Jack said as everyone nodded or waved hello.

"So you're the one who stole my little cousin's heart, huh" Jenny said to Taylor.

"She didn't steal my heart, I gave it to her" Chad said.

"Regardless, I still need to speak with Taylor for a minute or two" Jenny said.

"It's ok Tay, she'll play nice with you" I said when Taylor looked at me.

"Yeah, I only bite when it comes to Kayla" Jenny said.

"Umm, ok" Taylor said, leaving the family room with Jenny.

"How come we've never met you guys, but Troy has" Jason asked Jack.

"Because we live in Miami, and Troy spent New Years with us once. We're just here for the Thanksgiving holiday well, and Chad's birthday" Jack told him.

"Oh, well it's nice to meet you and Jenny" Jason said, shaking Jack's hand.

"I'm glad to finally meet the friends Chad and Kay have been talking about since we were little" Jack said.

"Kay, maybe you should go check on Tay and Jenny. They've been gone a long time" Chad said.

"Chad, they've been gone less than five minutes. Tay's fine" I told him.

"Yeah Chad, Jenny told me she just wanted to get to know Taylor a little. She's not gonna harass her or anything. Now if it were Kayla's boyfriend, that would be a completely different story" Jack said.

"You know, this whole double standard with Chad and his girls, and me and my guys that you and Jenny have is getting a bit old" I told him.

"Well, you're just gonna have to deal with it. Anyway, will we get a chance to speak with any potential boyfriends of yours tonight" Jack asked me.

"No, uh uh. My mom said that you and Jenny promised to be on your best behavior tonight, so you are not allowed to harass anyone" I said.

"Well if we see anyone getting too close, just know that one of us is going to step in" Jack said.

"Whatever. You're impossible. Anyway, you need to put your stuff away" I said.

"Just tell me where to put everything" Jack said.

"You can put Jenny's stuff in my parent's room, and your stuff in mine. You can either sleep upstairs in my room, or down here with us guys" Chad told him.

"I think I'll sleep down here and make sure you guys don't try to sneak upstairs to see the girls" Jack said.

"Whatever man. Come on, I'll show you where the rooms are" Chad said.

"No you won't, you just wanna know what Jenny and Tay are talking about. Jack, Chad's room is the first one on the right, and my parent's is at the end of the hall" I said.

"Thanks Kay" Jack said as he picked up his and Jenny's bags and headed upstairs.

"Wow Kay, he is kinda bad when it comes to you" Sharpay said.

"Oh that? That was nothing. That was just him talking. Wait til you see him in action" I told her.

"Yeah, when he and Jenny are in action, it's horrible. I actually felt bad for the guys who tried to talk to her" Troy said.

"How bad was it" Zeke asked.

"Well, when Chad, Troy, and I went to Miami for New Years in eighth grade, Jack and Jenny took us to a teen club, and I had been talking to this one guy pretty much the entire night, and I left him with Jack and Jenny for not even five minutes, and when I came back, he was gone. Troy, you know, I still don't know what they said to chase him off" I said.

"Basically they told him that your dad was a mob boss, and they were your bodyguards, and were instructed to kill anyone who got too close to you" Troy said.

"Oh my god. No wonder he ran off. That was just mean. They shouldn't have scared him like that" I said.

"You should have seen his face when they were talking to him. It was hysterical" Troy said.

"Yeah, we had to bite down on our fingers to control our laughter" Chad added.

"You two are almost as bad as they are" I said.

"Oh come on Kay, we're not that bad" Jenny said as she and Jack entered the family room with their arms linked with Taylor.

"Yes you are, but I see Tay made it back in one piece" I said.

"You were worried about her" Jenny asked.

"Me? No. Chad on the other hand was a bit worried that you might scare her off" I told her.

"Nope, I like Taylor. We were just sharing stories about little Chad here" Jenny said.

"What kind of stories" Kelsi asked.

"Only the most embarrassing ones, which we'll be talking about later" Taylor said with a smile.

"Ooh, our first post-party discussion topic" Sharpay said.

"What time does this party end anyway" Jack asked.

"My parents said three, but I doubt anyone will stay that long. It's supposed to start at eight, but I don't think anyone will get here until at least nine, so we have time to just hang and talk or whatever" I said.

"Ok, cool" Jack said as he and Jenny pulled chairs from the living room into the family room so everyone could sit down.

We spent the next hour or so hanging out just the twelve of us as everyone got to know Jack and Jenny, and they got to know everyone else. Our first guests arrived around nine, and by nine-thirty, the party was in full swing. Deciding that there were enough people at the party to do the cake, I grabbed Gabi and went up on the stage.

"First off, I just want to thank everyone for coming over to help my brother celebrate his eighteenth birthday. Now, it's time for cake, so if Chad could come up here while Zeke and James bring in the cake, we can get this started" I said.

Chad came up to the stage while Zeke ran to the kitchen to get James and the cake. The cake looked almost too good to eat, a triple layer vanilla cream cake with black frosting and blue icing, Chad's favorite colors, with a miniature Chad standing on top in his basketball uniform, with a basketball in his hands. Zeke and James had strategically placed eighteen candles all over the cake, which made it difficult for all of them to be blown out at once.

"Kay, can you help me blow out the candles" Chad asked.

"Umm, sure" I said, nodding at Gabi who led everybody through "Happy Birthday."

Once Chad and I blew the candles out, Zeke handed Chad a knife so he could cut the first piece of cake. Chad cut a large piece, then gave the knife to James who took the cake into the dining room to cut slices for everyone.

"So how do you like the party so far Chad" I asked once Chad and I made it over to one of the couches we had left in the family room.

"It's great, but I'm wondering what my Angels have up their sleeves" Chad said, taking a bite of his cake.

"Just our performance, which will be amazing, if I do say so myself" I said.

"Well does the birthday boy get any hints" Chad asked.

"Nope, you'll have to wait like everyone else. Are you planning to perform tonight" I asked him.

"I've worked something out, but I'm not telling you so don't even ask. You'll just have to wait and see what we've put together" Chad said.

"We who" I asked.

"Can't tell ya, I've already said too much" Chad said, moving the cake when I tried to get some.

"Chad, you won't tell me what you're performing, or who you're performing with, so the least you could do is share your cake" I told him.

"It's my birthday, and if I don't want to share my cake, I don't have to" Chad said.

We fought over his cake until Taylor came to get me so we could get ready for our performance, which distracted Chad long enough for me to steal some of his cake, and run off to the kitchen where Sharpay was.

After we warmed up, the three of us went back to the family room and took the stage. Sharpay signaled the deejay who turned the music down so we could talk. We each picked up one of the five microphones Gabi had set up on the stage, and I announced what was going on.

"Hi everyone, I just want to thank you again for coming out tonight, and let you guys know that it's time for performances. On the invitation, we said that anyone who wanted to sing would have an opportunity to do so, and now is the time for that" I said.

"Now remember, this is a party, so let's keep the songs fun and light" Taylor said.

"And this is now karaoke, so you had better know your words or else you will be pulled off the stage" Sharpay said, with Taylor and I rolling our eyes in response.

"Please give it up for Chad's Angels" the deejay announced after receiving the signal from me.

After applause from the crowd died down, **Taylor**, _Sharpay_, and I began performing "Independent Women" By Destiny's Child.

_Taylor M... with my girl, Kay... Sharpay E. and Destiny  
Chad's Angels, Come on  
Uh uh uh _

Question: Tell me what you think about me  
I buy my own diamonds and I buy my own rings  
Only ring your cell-y when I'm feelin lonely  
When it's all over please get up and leave

Question: Tell me how you feel about this  
Try to control me boy you get dismissed  
Pay my own car note, I pay my own bills  
Always 50/50 in relationships 

The shoes on my feet  
_**I bought it**_  
The clothes I'm wearing  
_**I bought it**_  
The rock I'm rockin'  
_**I bought it**_  
'Cause I depend on me  
If I wanted the watch you're wearin'  
_**I bought it**_  
The house I live in  
_**I bought it**_  
The car I'm driving  
_**I bought it**_  
I depend on me (**I depend on me**)

_All the women who are independent  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the honeys who makin' money  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the mommas who profit dollas  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the ladies who truly feel me  
__**Throw your hands up at me**_

**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that  
**_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_  
**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that**  
_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_

_Tell me how you feel about this  
Do what I want, live how I wanna live  
I worked hard and sacrificed to get what I get  
Ladies, it ain't easy bein' independent _

Question: How'd you like this knowledge that I brought  
Braggin' on that cash that he gave you is a front  
If you're gonna brag make sure it's your money you flaunt  
Depend on no one else to give you what you want 

The shoes on my feet  
_**I bought it**_  
The clothes I'm wearing  
_**I bought it**_  
The rock I'm rockin'  
_**I bought it**_  
'Cause I depend on me  
If I wanted the watch you're wearin'  
_**I bought it**_  
The house I live in  
_**I bought it**_  
The car I'm driving  
_**I bought it**_  
I depend on me (**I depend on me**)

_All the women who are independent  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the honeys who makin' money  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the mommas who profit dollas  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the ladies who truly feel me  
__**Throw your hands up at me**_

**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that  
**_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_  
**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that**  
_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_

_TayPayKay_  
**Wassup**  
_You in the house_  
**Sho 'nuff**  
_We'll break these people off Angel style_

_**Child of Destiny  
Independent beauty  
No one else takes care of me  
Chad's Angels**_

_Woah_  
_All the women who are independent  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the honeys who makin' money  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the mommas who profit dollas  
__**Throw your hands up at me**__  
All the ladies who truly feel me  
__**Throw your hands up at me**_

**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that  
**_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_  
**Girl I didn't know you could get down like that**  
_Chad, how your Angels get down like that_

"Oh my god, you guys sounded great" Kelsi said once we were finished.

"And the dancing wasn't bad either. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you guys called Destiny's Child and got private lessons or something" Gabi said.

"Nope, just hard work and a lot of practice" I said.

"Well you guys were really great, and Tay, I didn't know you had that in you" Troy said.

"What, you didn't know? My baby is very talented" Chad said, wrapping his arms around Taylor from behind.

"Thank you Troy, and you too Chad. Honestly, I didn't know I had it in me either, but Kayla and Sharpay wouldn't let me rest until they had pulled it out of me" Taylor said.

"What can we say? When we want something, we get it, and we wanted to get the best performance we could" I said.

"That's right, we couldn't have our girl get up there and look silly, so we had to work her til everything was perfect" Sharpay added.

"Well, it certainly paid off, you guys were great" Ryan said, with Zeke and Jason nodding in agreement.

"Thanks for the compliments everyone, but this Angel need something to drink" I said, leaving everyone in the family room, and going into the dining room to get some punch.

"Hey Kayla, you guys were great up there" Derek said, coming up to me with two glasses of punch and offering me one.

"Thanks Derek, we worked really hard to get the routine just right" I told him, accepting the glass of punch from him, and walking with him to the living room to sit down.

"Well, it definitely showed. I didn't even know Taylor could sing like that" Derek said.

"Neither did she, but she wanted to do her best for Chad, so she let Sharpay and I torture her in between making plans for this party" I said.

"You guys did a great job with this party. It'll definitely be one of the highlights of senior year" Derek said.

"Really? What's been your favorite part so far" I asked him.

"Well aside from the amazing decorations and delicious food, I'm gonna have to go with your performance. How did you guys come up with the name Chad's Angels" Derek asked.

"I can't tell you because Chad would kill me, but speaking of performances, are you planning to go on stage" I asked him.

"I may have worked on a little something" Derek said.

"Well, I look forward to seeing what you've come up with" I said.

Derek and I talked a bit more before Jack came over to where we were sitting.

"Hey Kay, don't you want to introduce me to your friend" Jack asked, sitting down with us.

"Not really, but it would be rude not to, huh" I asked.

"It would" Derek said, with Jack nodding in agreement.

"Fine. Derek, this is my cousin Jack. Jack, this is my friend Derek" I said, making the introductions.

"Derek huh? Kayla, do you mind if I have a word or two with Derek" Jack asked.

"Yes I mind. Derek is just my friend, and I will not let you harass just because he wants to have a conversation with me" I said.

"Chill Kay, I promise I'll be on my best behavior. Chad told me he plays football, and I wanted to get his thoughts on the NFL" Jack said.

"It's cool Kayla" Derek said.

"Ok, but you better be nice Jack" I said.

"I promise, and you know I never break my promises to you" Jack said.

"Alright fine, I need to send James home anyway" I said, leaving the two of them in the living room while I went to the kitchen to see James.

After thanking James and sending him home, I stopped back through the living room to check on Jack and Derek who, surprisingly, were only talking about football, then went back to the family room to enjoy the party and watch the performances. After about five performances, including Derek and four other football players singing NSYNC's "Bye, Bye, Bye," Jason pulled me off the couch and told me that the next group wanted me to be in front of the stage.

"Who's the next group Jason" I asked as we made our way to the stage where Gabi and Kelsi already were.

"You'll see in a minute" Jason told me, refusing to give me anymore information.

"Please welcome to the stage Four of a Kind" the deejay said as Chad, Troy, Ryan, and Zeke emerged from the crowd, in matching outfits, to thunderous applause.

"Zeke is performing? I thought he couldn't sing" Sharpay said as she and Taylor joined us.

"That's what we thought about Taylor, but she surprised us" Gabi said.

"There will be a surprise, but you guys have to be quiet and watch" Jason said.

"Yes sir" Sharpay said, giving Jason a mock salute.

By now, the applause had died down enough for Chad to talk.

"I just want to thank everyone for coming out tonight, and a special thanks goes out to my Angels who put this amazing party together" Chad said, pointing to Taylor, Sharpay, and I who turned around and waved, while everyone applauded us.

"This song goes out to a special lady, and hopefully she knows who she is" Troy said, causing everyone to look around and wonder who he meant.

After signaling the deejay, **Chad**, _Troy, _Ryan, and ZEKE began to perform "Girlfriend" by B2K.

I'VE GOT EVERYTHING I WANT IN MY LIFE EXCEPT A GIRLFRIEND

**Just copped a Bentley and it's parked in my garage  
It's 2:00 I'm pullin' in for my massage  
And everywhere they know just who we are  
There they go it's them ghetto superstars**

_The latest throw backs and them ones on my feet  
Get out the Benz and them I'm off up in the Jeep  
Takin flicks with chicks that look like Licia Keys  
All of that I'm still missin' one thing  
_  
_**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(Hey, everything I wanted)  
_**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend **_(And everything I need)  
_**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(Oh would you be my)  
_**Would you be my girlfriend, girlfriend**_

We hit the mall I buy you Prada Nike suits  
I'm being pampered while I'm chillin by the pool  
From the show to the limo to the club  
And to the end showin' nothin' but some love

**Got plenty clothes, plenty ice plenty cash  
I'm pretty swole pretty abs pretty shhh  
I got every single thing that I need  
Except for a main squeeze**

_**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(A girlfriend)  
_**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend **_(I need, I need)  
_**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(Would you be my) _**Would you be my girlfriend, girlfriend **_

_Tell me who's gonna be my girlfriend  
And who out there needs a real man  
And who's gonna ride or die with me Who's gonna give us what we need_

I NEED A CHICK WITH BIG HIPS THAT'S JUST MY MOTIVATION  
NO MORE GAME PREPARATION, THIS IS PIMPERATION  
SHE MUST BE READY AND STEADY FOR A ROMANCE SESSION  
I'M TALKIN' WILLIN' TO LEARN, A ZEKE LESSON  
NOW SHE PLAYIN' AT IT AGAIN AND NOW WE ARGUIN'  
TALKIN' GIRLS, TALK MESS AND TELLIN' ALL HER FRIENDS  
BUT I SEEN THIS ONE CHICK TONIGHT  
AND I'MA MAKE HER MY GIRLFRIEND, MY GIRLFRIEND

_**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend **_(Someone for me, yeah)  
_**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend **_(That is all I need)  
_**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(In my life)  
_**Would you be my girlfriend, girlfriend **_

_**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend**_ (Someone to call my own) _**I need a girlfriend, girlfriend**_ (And I'm gonna take her out) _**A girlfriend, girlfriend **_(To show her what I'm all about) _**Would you be my girlfriend, girlfriend**_

"Wow, you guys were great" Gabi said when the guys came off stage.

"Yeah, and Zeke, we didn't know you could rap" Sharpay said.

"It's not something I like to broadcast, but it was the only way I could get someone to stop talking, and listen to me" Zeke said.

"What are you talking about Zeke" I asked him.

"I'm talking about how when I tried to tell you how I felt at Homecoming, you said I should find the girl I liked and ask her to dance, even though I was already dancing with her" Zeke said.

"You meant me? I'm sorry Zeke, I didn't know. I thought you still saw me as" I started, but was cut off by Zeke.

"As my best friend's little sister" Zeke asked.

"Well yeah" I told him.

"I did, and you will always be my best friend's little sister, but I see that you're so much more than that now. You're one of the most caring, sensitive, loving people I know, you're beautiful, and on top of that, you're incredibly smart. How could a guy not someone like that" Zeke asked.

"I don't know" I said, my eyes filling with tears.

"He couldn't, which is why I'm asking you to be my girlfriend" Zeke said.

"Zeke, I would love to be your girlfriend" I said as Zeke took me in his arms, and kissed me in front of everyone.

"Finally" Chad said, earning an elbow to the side from two of his Angels.

"Be quiet Chad" Sharpay said.

"What? You were all thinking it" Chad said, rubbing his sides.

"Yes, but you shouldn't have said it" Taylor told him.

"You know, we can still hear you guys" Zeke said.

"Sorry, I guess congratulations are in order" Taylor said.

"Yeah, congratulations you guys, you definitely deserve this" Gabi said.

"And you had better appreciate all the hard work we put into getting you two together" Chad said, this time getting hit by Troy and Jason.

"Stop abusing my brother. Chad, what are you talking about" I asked, then caught sight of Derek about to leave. "Actually, never mind, we'll talk about that later. There's someone I need to talk to. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Derek, hey" I said, catching him before he went outside.

"Hey Kayla, I guess congratulations are in order, huh" Derek said.

"Umm, about that, I'm sorry if I led you on or anything, I really didn't mean to, it's just that" I started, but was interrupted by Derek.

"Kayla, there's no need to explain. I've seen you two together, and you're perfect for each other, and I don't know how I thought I could compete with that. Just know that if Zeke ever messes up, I'll be waiting" Derek said.

"Thank you for being so understanding Derek, and I hope you still want to be friends" I said.

"Of course, I don't want to lose the girl, and a friend as well. But I've gotta go, I'm supposed to pick my brother up in twenty minutes, so I'll see you at school" Derek said.

"Bye Derek" I said, closing the door after he left.

"Kayla, are you ok" Sharpay asked, coming over to me.

"Yeah, I just need a minute, then I'll be alright" I told her.

"Ok, I'm here if you need me" Sharpay said, leaving me alone.

I took sometime to compose myself, then headed back to the family room to enjoy the rest of the party with my new boyfriend.

**Thanks for reading, please review.**


	19. PostParty Chat

**I have some good news and some bad news. The good news is my internet is back to working, but the bad news is this is the last chapter. I have enjoyed writing this story, and hope you've enjoyed reading it as well. All of your comments have been greatly appreciated, and helped me to keep writing this story. Only Kayla, Jack, Jenny, and Derek are mine, everyone else belongs to Disney. Enjoy**

Chapter 19: Post-Party Chat

After all the party guests had left, we put the extra food away so it could be taken to the homeless shelter in the morning, then started cleaning up so we would have less to do when we got up. The living room and dining room were pretty much back to normal, so we decided to leave the family room for tomorrow, and take a break from cleaning. Just as we were about to go to the family room to relax, Jenny pulled Zeke off to the side.

"Zeke, Jack and I would like to have a word with you" Jenny said.

"About what" Zeke asked.

"About you and our little cousin" Jenny replied.

"Jack said you guys wouldn't harass anyone" I said.

"I said we wouldn't harass anyone at Chad's party, and we didn't, but Chad's party is over now, so we can do whatever we want" Jack said.

"But" I said.

"No buts about it Kayla, Zeke is your boyfriend now, so it's time for him to chat with your favorite cousins" Jack said.

"Besides, it's only fair, we talked to Chad's girlfriend, and now we need to talk to your boyfriend" Jenny added.

"It's ok Kayla, I'll be fine" Zeke said.

"Ooh, did you hear that Jen? He'll be fine" Jack said.

"I heard him Jack, but you know those are the famous last words of all new boyfriends. We'll see if he's fine once we're through with him" Jenny said.

"You, let's go" Jack said as Jenny pulled Zeke out of the room.

"Be nice you two" I called after them.

"Can't promise that" Jack said, following Jenny and Zeke upstairs.

"Chad, can you go with them and make sure they're nice to him" I asked.

"Kayla, I'm sure Zeke will be just fine" Chad said.

"Please" I asked again.

"Fine, I'm going" Chad said.

"Thank you" I said.

"Do you really think Chad will be able to get them to be nice" Taylor asked as we all sat down in the family room, Sharpay and I on one couch, Kelsi and Jason on the other, Troy on the floor next to Sharpay, and Ryan, Gabi, and Taylor on the floor across from us.

"Honestly, I'm not sure. I mean Zeke is one of Chad's best friends, so Chad knows that Zeke is a good guy, but Chad is also my over-protective big brother who doesn't think any guy is good enough for me, so I'm thinking he'll soften the blows from Jack and Jenny" I said.

"He'll have to do a lot of softening because your cousins did not look like they were playing" Kelsi said.

"I know, I just hope they don't chase him away" I said.

"Not to change the subject, but what movies are coming out between now and Christmas" Sharpay asked, changing the subject.

"You do know that you just changed the subject right, Shar" Ryan asked.

"Yes, I know that Ry, I wanted to take Kay's mind off Zeke, but if I had just started talking about movies, everyone would have asked where that came from, so I decided to say that first" Sharpay said.

"Thanks for thinking of me Pay, but let's not talk about movies, let's talk about what you said. By saying "not to change the subject," you changed the subject. It's one of those phrases that just by saying it, you're doing exactly what you're saying you're not doing" I said.

"Like when people say "not to be mean, but," you know that whatever comes next will be mean" Gabi said.

"Or when people say "no offense, but," like that's supposed to make whatever they say any less offensive, which it doesn't" Jason added.

"Or when they say "I don't want to brag, but," we know you're about to start bragging, so just do it" Taylor said.

We discussed these phrases, and others like them, until Chad and Zeke came into the family room. Chad immediately went and sat next to Taylor, but Zeke just stood in the doorway.

"Zeke, are you ok" I asked him.

"Huh? Oh, umm yeah, I just really need to ask you something, are your cousins friends with a mob boss" Zeke asked, finally sitting on the couch.

"Of course not" I started.

"Oh, that's good, they had me scared there for a bit" Zeke said, cutting me off before I finished my sentence.

"They're friends with his son" I said, finishing my sentence.

"Seriously" Sharpay asked from her seat on the floor next to Troy, where she'd moved when Zeke and Chad came into the family room.

"Yeah, they met back when they were in third grade, and have been friends ever since, but don't say anything because it's supposed to be a secret" I said.

"So they could really put a hit out on me if they wanted" Zeke asked.

"Is that what they told you? That they'd put a hit out on you" I asked.

"Yeah" Zeke said.

"And you let them say that to him" I asked Chad.

"I didn't think they were serious" Chad said.

"I can't believe you Chad. He's one of your best friends, and you saw that he was scared, but you did nothing to reassure him that he would be fine. And your cousins, I've told them before that they can't go around threatening people with their mob connections. Where are they" I asked.

"They're still upstairs" Chad said.

"Ok, I'll be back in a few minutes" I said, getting off the couch to go have a word with my cousins.

"Kay, wait, you don't have to do that" Zeke said, pulling me back onto the couch.

"Yes I do, they can't threaten to put a hit out on you, and expect me to be ok with it" I said.

"I guess we won" Jack said as he and Jenny entered the family room and sat on the floor.

"Won what" Gabi asked.

"Our bet with Zeke" Jenny answered.

"What bet with Zeke" I asked.

"We bet Zeke five dollars that if he told you that we threatened him, you'd want to go off on us, and from the sounds of it, we were about to get a severe tongue lashing" Jenny said.

"And Chad gets an extra five dollars since he got in trouble for not helping Zeke" Jack added.

"What? All of this was part of some bet? I can't believe you guys" I said, moving to the other end of the couch, away from Zeke, and closer to Sharpay.

"Guys, that is not cool" Sharpay said.

"Chad, I can't believe you went along with that" Taylor said, hitting Chad on his arm.

"Ow Tay, that hurt. Kay, I'm sorry, but it was too good an opportunity to pass up. It was an easy ten dollars, you can have it if you'll stop being mad at me" Chad said.

"Ten dollars is not gonna fix this Chad. I'm sorry for yelling at you, but you guys shouldn't have done that" I said.

"Kay we're sorry, Zeke didn't believe us when we told him you would defend him if we threatened him, so we decided to show him" Jack said.

"It doesn't matter why you did it, just that you did it" I said.

"Kay, I'm really sorry, I didn't think you'd get this upset" Zeke said.

"You're still not forgiven, not yet anyway" I told him.

"Good going Zeke, you two haven't even been dating for five hours yet, and you're already in the dog house" Troy said.

"Troy, it's not nice to tease your friends" Jenny said.

"Since you two didn't threaten to put a hit out on Zeke, what did you tell him" I asked.

"That if he broke your heart, then we'd break his legs" Jack said.

"Hmm, broken legs for a broken heart, huh? That sounds fair" I said, secretly nudging Sharpay.

"Kay, I know you're mad at Zeke, but you know that's not a fair trade off, broken legs for a broken heart" Sharpay said.

"She's right Kay, broken arms for a broken heart is more fair, since the arms are closer to the heart" Taylor said.

"Yeah, that seems more fair" Sharpay said.

"Guys, you're scaring Zeke. Zeke, I assure you no one will break your arms or legs. Your ankles maybe, but definitely not your arms or legs" Kelsi said.

"Why his ankles Kelsi" Sharpay asked.

"Because they take longer to heal. Her heart would take a long time to heal, and so should he" Kelsi explained.

"Oh, I never thought of it that way. Good thinking Kels" Taylor said.

"Ok guys, enough teasing Zeke. I think he's learned his lesson" Gabi said.

"Thank you Gabi" Zeke said.

"Besides, why should he get two things broken just for breaking one heart? That's not right. If he breaks her heart, we should just break his nose" Gabi said.

"Ladies, arguing over what we're gonna do if he breaks her heart is getting us nowhere. Zeke, just know that if you break Kay's heart, we're gonna break you" Sharpay said.

"Umm, I didn't, I wasn't gonna, I umm" Zeke stammered, causing all of us girls to burst into laughter.

"Oh my god, Zeke, you are officially out of the doghouse. You should have seen your face" I said, laughing and sliding closer to Zeke.

"He can" Jenny said, giving Zeke her cell phone, which she used to record Zeke's reaction to all the threats.

"You guys are horrible, I actually felt bad for the poor guy" Jack said.

"I wanna thank all my sisters for catching on and playing along with me, and assisting me in my payback" I said.

"It was our pleasure Kay" Sharpay said.

"You know, I wasn't really all that scared. I was just pretending" Zeke said, giving Jenny back her phone.

"Oh really" I asked.

"Yes really, and would you like to know why" Zeke asked.

"Yes Zeke, please enlighten us" Taylor said.

"It's because I never wanna break your heart. You mean a lot to me, and I promise to try my hardest to always do my best to make you happy and never hurt you" Zeke said.

"Aww Zeke, that is so sweet. And I promise that broken heart or not, I will never let anyone hurt you" I said, kissing Zeke.

"Ok, since Zeke is out of the doghouse, are the rest of us off the hook" Chad asked.

"Nope, you three are still in trouble, but you could start working your way out by explaining what you meant when you said Zeke and I better appreciate all the hard work you guys put into getting us together" I said.

"Chad wasn't supposed to tell you guys about that, it was supposed to be a secret" Sharpay said.

"Well, the secret is out, and we wanna know" Zeke said.

"Ok, back towards the end of September, Chad came to me and asked what was up with you two, so I told him what I knew" Sharpay said.

"And before you throw a fit about Sharpay betraying the sisterhood, or whatever, she didn't. She just confirmed what I already knew, and that includes the kiss" Chad said.

"What kiss" Ryan asked.

"They kissed back in eighth grade" Chad told him.

"You never told us that" Troy said.

"How did you know about that" I asked Chad.

"I saw you. I got home about five minutes before I came in. I was walking past the window because I thought I saw something in the backyard, and I saw you" Chad said.

"But you didn't say anything" I said.

"I didn't need to. I saw how Zeke handled it, and thought it would be better if I didn't say anything" Chad said.

"Oh, well thank you for that" I said.

"Sharpay said you went to her in September. Have you guys been working on us for that long" Zeke asked.

"Only Sharpay and I have been working since September. Everyone else was drafted after our Homecoming plan failed" Chad said.

"The guy you wanted to ask me to Homecoming was Zeke" I asked.

"Yeah, but someone just had to ask you first" Sharpay said, nudging Troy.

"Hey, I didn't know you were trying to make sure she was free for Zeke. You guys should have told me" Troy said.

"It really wouldn't have mattered anyway since someone else told her to forget about Zeke, and find someone new, which she almost did" Chad said.

"Hey, I was only trying to help. She was in the bathroom in tears because she thought Zeke liked someone else. Anyone else would have said the same thing" Gabi defended.

"Gabi, ignore Chad. I really did appreciate your advice that night" I told her.

"Thank you Kayla" Gabi said.

"But the thing is, he did like you, and I tried telling you that, but" Chad said.

"Darbus announced king and queen" I finished for him.

"Yeah, then you started dancing with all those guys, and" Chad started, but was cut off by Zeke.

"No need to relive that Chad" Zeke said.

"Aww, was someone jealous" Taylor teased.

"No, I knew none of those guys stood a chance with her. Well except for Derek, he worried me a little" Zeke said, pulling me closer to him.

"Obviously, you had nothing to worry about" I said, giving Zeke a small kiss.

"Anyway, after Troy and Gabi spoiled our Homecoming plan, we decided that the next time we had a plan, we would tell everyone so it wouldn't get messed up" Sharpay said.

"And your next plan was" I asked.

"To get Zeke to tell you on opening night" Sharpay said.

"See, I had talked to Zeke, and told him that I knew he liked you, and asked him what he planned to do about it. He said he wanted to tell you after the musical, so all I had to do was make sure he was at the cast party" Chad said.

"Which is why you invited Zeke instead of Taylor" I said.

"Yeah, we needed to make sure he was invited, but knew you weren't gonna invite him because you were trying to get to know Derek, and invited him. Luckily, he couldn't come, so getting rid of him was a non-issue. We talked to everyone, and had planned to leave you two alone, which you made easy by going to do your post-show ritual. Zeke was supposed to talk to you, and tell you how he felt, but you decided to have a meltdown instead" Chad said.

"Hey, I can't help it if I'm oversensitive at times" I said.

"Whatever. Anyway, we had to regroup and find another way for Zeke to tell you without you interrupting him or having a meltdown, and the guys and I decided that my party would be the perfect place. We just had to figure out how we would do it" Chad said.

"And we decided that the best way to go was with a song. The hardest part was convincing Zeke to perform" Ryan said.

"Why didn't you tell me about this plan" Sharpay asked.

"Because you would have told Kay and everyone else, and it was supposed to be a surprise" Ryan told her.

"Anyway, between you three discussing the party here and at the Evans', Chad and Ryan knew all the details, and we just had to schedule our performance at the right time" Troy said.

"And how did you know that I wouldn't be busy, or talking to someone, when it was time for you guys to perform" I asked.

"Because my job was to get you to the stage by any means necessary, even if I had to interrupt your conversation" Jason said.

"Which he didn't have to do, thanks to me" Jack said.

"What are you talking about" Jenny asked him.

"Well, I spotted Kay talking to Derek, and asked Chad what his story was. Chad told me that he might be interested in Kay, but that Kay was more interested in Zeke, and that Jason was gonna have to get Derek away from Kay later, so I figured I'd help out and keep Derek distracted so Kay would be free when it was time for Zeke to make his move" Jack said.

"So you like Zeke huh" I asked.

"Yeah, he's a cool guy. Derek is a pretty cool guy too though. If you weren't with Zeke, Derek would be a good match for you" Jack said.

"Thanks for your approval, but I'm gonna stick with Zeke" I said, giving Zeke a small kiss.

"Will you please stop that" Chad asked.

"Stop what" I asked him.

"Stop kissing" Chad said.

"Like you and Tay don't do it all the time" I said.

"Besides, don't you wanna see how all your hard work has paid off" Zeke asked him.

"Yes, but I don't need to see you guys kissing to know that my hard work paid off. The smile on Kay's face is evidence enough" Chad said.

"Aww Chad, that is so sweet. Consider yourself off the hook" I told him.

"What about us" Jenny asked.

"You two are still in trouble, but not as much as before. You'll find some way to fix things eventually" I told her.

"But Kay, that's not fair" Jack said.

"Neither is life, but we get used to it. Anyway, Zeke and I appreciate everything you guys have done for us, and girls, I'm sorry you have had to deal with me and my drama all this time, but I promise the drama is over. Ok, who am I kidding, it's not over, but it will be lessened" I said.

"It's ok Kayla, we like your drama" Gabi said.

"Yeah, it's a lot better than a certain someone's" Taylor said as we all looked at Sharpay.

"Why are you all looking at me? I don't have that much drama" Sharpay said.

"Please Shar, you are the queen of drama" Ryan said.

"I am not" Sharpay said, pouting.

"Pay, you kinda are, but that's why we love you" I said.

"Whatever. Anyway, I want to know what stories Taylor was told about Chad" Sharpay said.

"Yeah, take the spotlight off of you" Chad said.

"We better take this one cause it doesn't happen very often" Troy said, earning an elbow to the side from Sharpay.

"Troy you'd better watch it before you end up in the doghouse" Zeke said.

"What do you know about the doghouse? You were only in there for like five minutes" Kelsi said.

"I know enough to know that I never want to be in there again" Zeke said.

"Well, doghouse or not, I still wanna hear the stories about Chad" Sharpay said.

"I have to agree with Shar, what embarrassing stories can we hear about Chad" Jason asked.

"None, absolutely none" Chad said.

"Come on Chad, don't be such a spoilsport" Taylor said.

"Fine, one story, and that's it" Chad said.

"Ok, how about the one where you tried to cut your hair for the first time" Taylor said.

"Come on Taylor, we told more embarrassing stories than that" Jenny said.

"I didn't want to embarrass him too much" Taylor said.

"Fine, I'll tell a story then" Jack said.

"Which one" I asked.

"How about your performance at the family reunion when you guys were seven and eight" Jack said.

"Ok, that's embarrassing, but not too embarrassing. I guess you could tell that one" Chad said.

"Not that I was asking for it, but thanks for your permission Chad. Anyway, at every family reunion, we have a talent show, and this was the first time Chad and Kay were singing, and at first, Kay was really nervous and Chad was the calm one, but when they got up in front of everyone, the roles were switched and Chad became super nervous" Jack said.

"He ended up spraying the cookies I had snuck him all over my dad, and their duet became Kay's solo" Jenny added.

"Kay, you sang without him" Sharpay asked.

"Hey, you know what they say, the show must go on. Anyway, once Chad finished emptying his stomach, he came back and helped me finish the song, and we got a standing ovation" I said.

"Except for my dad, who was trying to clean his shirt" Jenny said.

"That wasn't very embarrassing" Troy said.

"Maybe not to you, but it is to me" Chad said.

"We'll have to show you the video one day" I said.

"There's footage of this? Ok, I take back my earlier statement. Maybe it is embarrassing" Troy said.

"That's not even his most embarrassing moment, which I won't mention" I said, noticing the way Chad was looking at me.

"Smart move lil sis" Chad said.

"Did you guys perform in the talent show the next year" Jason asked.

"Yeah, we won our first one, even with Chad having his issues, and every one after that up until two years ago when we decided to stop competing, and let someone else have a chance to win" I said.

"Now we just put the show together, and help everyone else get ready" Chad added.

"Everyone was so happy when they decided to stop competing that we gave them an honorary award that year" Jenny said.

"Wow, the unstoppable Danforths. You guys have been winning talent shows for years, and we never even knew Chad had musical talent" Sharpay said.

"I couldn't let you guys know all my talents" Chad said.

"What other hidden talents do you have" Taylor asked him.

"Can't tell ya right now, but maybe one day you'll be lucky enough to experience them" Chad told her.

"Umm, anyway, Jack and I are gonna head upstairs for a bit so you guys can have some privacy, but ladies, I want you upstairs in an hour. Alone" Jenny said.

"Yes mother" I said as Jenny and Jack went upstairs.

"So, your cousins really like me, huh" Zeke asked once Jenny and Jack were out of earshot.

"It looks like it, but it wouldn't matter if they didn't. I like you and that's all that matters" I told him.

"That's good to know" Zeke said.

"Guys, this means we can go on quintuple dates or something. It's gonna be so much fun" Sharpay said excitedly.

"Shar, calm down, it'll be the same as us hanging out right now" Troy told her, showing her how we were all together, but separated into couples.

"Oh, I guess you're right" Sharpay said, disappointed.

"Don't let that stop you from planning a fabulous group date Pay. I'm sure we'd all have a great time" I told her.

"Ok, any suggestions" Sharpay asked.

"A picnic in the park" Taylor suggested.

"The movies" Ryan said.

"The mall" Gabi offered.

"Bowling" Chad said.

"Miniature golf" Kelsi suggested.

"Go-kart racing" Jason offered.

"Laser tag" Troy suggested.

"What about you two" Sharpay asked.

"Anywhere with Zeke is fine with me" I told her.

"Yeah, as long as I'm with Kay, I'm happy" Zeke said.

"Enough with all the sappiness please" Chad said.

"Chad, leave them alone. When you and Tay got together, you were just as sappy, if not sappier" Gabi said.

"And you're still sappy" Kelsi added.

"Yeah, but" Chad started.

"They do have a point Chad" Taylor said.

"I know, but… fine, I'm over it" Chad said.

"Good, now can we get back to planning this group date" Sharpay asked.

"Yes Sharpay" Chad said.

"Ok, I'll need some time to get everything organized, so three weeks" Sharpay asked.

"Yeah Shar, that sounds good" Kelsi answered for all of us.

"Ok, now what were your suggestions again" Sharpay asked, causing everyone to start talking at the same time.

As I listened to everyone talk about what we should do for our first official group date, I couldn't help but smile. Snuggling closer to Zeke, I looked around at all the couples sitting in my family room, Ryan and Gabi, Chad and Tay, Jason and Kelsi, Troy and Pay, and finally Zeke and I. I'm not sure how long things will be this way, or how long we'll be this close, but as of right now, everything is exactly the way it's supposed to be.

**Thank you for reading. Please leave a review to let me know what you thought about this chapter, and the story as a whole. Thank you.**


End file.
